One of the world’s foremost private collections will be displayed for the first time at the San Diego Museum of Art from Oct. 21 through March 11.

Modern Masters from Latin America: The Perez Simon Collection, is an exhibition showcasing 102 works of art by some of the greatest modern masters from countries including Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

The exhibition illustrates the multifaceted history of Latin American modernism.

Spanning the late 1800s to the first decade of this century, Modern Masters from Latin America: The Perez Simon Collection represents more than 75 artists, each celebrated for their respective techniques and regional influence on modernism.

Noteworthy artists include Frida Kahlo, Rufino Tamayo, Fernando Botero, Jose Maria Velasco, Joaquín Torres-García, Kazuya Sakai, Jesús Rafael Soto, Roberto Matta, Wifredo Lam, as well as Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and José Clemente Orozco – the three pioneers of the Mexican muralism movement.

The exhibition is framed by three major themes– Landscape and Identity, The Avant-Garde Explosion, and Breaking Boundaries: Post-1960s Diversity and Dystopia–and will explore the importance of landscape painting in the formation of national identities; the influence of Symbolism and Latin America’s role in developing the international style; the variety of Latin American avant-gardes including Surrealism and Abstraction; modern depictions of indigenous cultures and more.

“It’s an exceptional opportunity to have an exhibition that shows the richness of the Latin American art, and even more when it comes from a private collection that otherwise makes it difficult for the public eye to enjoy. This ensemble has not been exhibited in any other public space before,” said Roxana Velasquez, Executive Director of The San Diego Museum of Art to La Prensa San Diego. “There are multiple faces that identify Latin America. The richness of the art languages produced from different countries would be contemplated through dozens of works of art that include the most outstanding artists of the subcontinent.”

Velasquez is the curator for the exhibition with guest co-curator Rocio Guerrero and assistance from Anita Feldman, deputy director for curatorial affairs and education, and Ariel Plotek, Ph.D., curator of modern and contemporary art.

Juan Antonio Perez Simon is a Spanish-Mexican businessman and celebrated art collector who began to build his collection in the 1970s. His passion for art and taste for culture has led him to acquire and continue to expand one of the world’s greatest collections of portraits, landscapes, and abstraction.

To complement this exhibition, The San Diego Museum of Art is hosting Frida and Me, an educational exhibition aimed at children that explores the inventiveness and power of Frida Kahlo’s work.

Frida and Me will be open throughout the run of Modern Masters from Latin America. Previously, Frida and Me toured throughout the United Kingdom, France, Brazil, Spain, and Mexico.
Additional programming that will accompany Modern Masters from Latin America includes a lecture, panel discussions, fine arts workshops, a series of Latin American films, and more.

There will also be a catalogue available with contributions from Roxana Velazquez, Rocio Guerrero, and Gerardo Mosquera.