Come to Mexico City to explore the lives of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera through their art. This is in-depth art history education at its best! We offer you a narrated cultural immersion that you can miss if you visit on your own. Come solo, with a partner or friend. Norma Schafer participates in all programs. Small group size limited to 8 people for quality experience.
2016 Schedule
- February 11-15, 2016
- March 31-April 4, 2016
Arrive and meet for a group dinner on Thursday at 7 p.m. We will have a long weekend — three full days — to learn about Diego Rivera‘s stunning Mexico City murals, visit Casa Azul where Diego and Frida Kahlo lived, and see the largest private collection of their work at the Dolores Olmedo Museum.
Man Controller of the Universe 1934 replicates mural destroyed at Rockefeller Center
Through their eyes, you will better understand Mexico’s political, cultural and social history, and their personal lives together. Theirs is a story of Mexico’s development as a post-revolutionary modern nation. You will also meet their contemporaries, muralists Jose Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Sequieros, as you compare and contrast their collective work.
If you want to register, send me an email. Tell me the dates you prefer!
A few little nips — Frida painted this after Rivera’s affair with her sister
This is an incredible experience! The Rivera murals at the Secretary of Public Education building were like nothing I expected. The scale, the intensity, the variation of themes, the continual flow of connecting vignettes – just mind blowing! It isn’t just an art tour. It is an intense immersion into the beginning of an art movement, a cultural movement, and a culmination of historic events that come alive. — Christine Bouton, North Carolina
Our expert guide is a noted art historian who holds a master’s degree in art history who is about to embark on a doctoral program. She shares her passion for the Mexican Muralists, narrates the expedition, and leads us through these spaces to give you the most meaningful educational experience:
- Palacio Nacional
- Palacio Bellas Artes
- Museo de Mural de Diego Rivera
- Secretaria de Educacion Publica (SEP)
- San Ildefonso National Preparatory School
- Abelardo Rodriguez market
- Casa Azul — the home of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo
- Museo Dolores Olmedo Patiño
Yes, you can visit these places independently. But it’s not likely you will get the same in-depth knowledge, insights, and perspectives if you do.
She called him toad. He was 20 years older. They were passionate about life, politics, each other. They shaped the world of modern art and she became an icon in her own right, creating an independent identity that serves as a role model for women. They were twice married and unfaithful, the subjects of books and film, and art retrospectives around the world.
Rivera’s Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park survived 1985 earthquake
Casa Azul — Museo Frida Kahlo is a tribute to the life of both artists. Museo Dolores Olmedo Patiño holds the largest private collection of Frida and Diego paintings in the world. Lola Olmedo was a benefactor and life-long personal friend of Rivera who became executor of his estate that included Casa Azul.
Rivera’s mural at the Palacio Nacional (National Palace) covers detailed Mexican history, from pre-Hispanic America to the Spanish Conquest through industrialization, including the French and U.S. invasions, from 1521 to 1930.
David Alfaro Sequieros, Rivera rival, painted this mural at Palacio Bellas Artes
Plus, you will have lots of options for independent exploration: shop for outstanding folk art, and eat at local markets, historic and fine contemporary and traditional restaurants!
Lunch at the gourmet Mercado San Juan
See our reviews on Trip Advisor!
Base Trip Includes:
- welcome dinner at renown restaurant Azul Historico
- guided discussions by an expert art historian educated at UNAM and Southern Methodist University
- introduction to Norma’s favorite restaurants (meals not included) and folk art galleries
- transportation to Casa Azul and Dolores Olmedo Museum
- complete travel packet and readings sent in advance via email
Also consider Evoking Frida Kahlo: Making Altars + Shrines Mixed Media Art Workshop — honor a loved one or create a self-portrait visual memoir
Preliminary Itinerary
- Day 1, Thursday: Meet for group dinner at 7 p.m. at Restaurant Azul Historico near the Zocalo. Dinner included in your tour cost. Overnight in Mexico City.
- Day 2, Friday: guided visit to SEP, Colegio de San Idlefonso, where Diego met Frida, and the Abelardo Rodriguez market where Rivera’s students, including Pablo O’Higgins, painted. Lunch and dinner on your own. Overnight in Mexico City.
One of 125 Rivera painted at SEP, 1923-28, this one mocking the bourgeoisie
- Day 3, Saturday: guided visit to Palacio Bellas Artes and Museo Mural de Diego Rivera. Optional folk art shopping or visit to Anthropology Museum. Lunch and dinner on your own. Overnight in Mexico City.
Palacio Bellas Artes built during the 30-year Porfirio Diaz presidency
- Day 4, Sunday: guided visit to Casa Azul and Museo Dolores Olmedo Patiño. Includes transportation. Lunch on your own. Overnight in Mexico City.
- Depart on Monday for home.
The oldest street in Mexico next to the Palacio Nacional looks like Europe
Be ready to WALK and then, walk some more! Don’t forget to bring an extra suitcase to pack treasures you pick up along the way.
- Base Cost: $595 USD per person without lodging.
- Upgrade: $895 USD per person double occupancy, includes 4 nights lodging.
- Single Supplement offered: $1,195 USD
Choose the upgrade and stay with us at a comfortable bed and breakfast inn located in the historic center of Mexico City with breakfast included.
Tiffany glass ceiling at El Gran Hotel Ciudad de Mexico — an optional stop on our tour
What the base cost does not include:
- lodging — we can recommend wonderful hotels in the historic center of Mexico City where you can make and pay for your own lodging arrangements directly, such as Chill Out Flat B&B, Hotel Catedral or Gran Hotel Ciudad de Mexico.
- meals except noted in itinerary, alcoholic beverages
- transportation to/from Mexico City
- museum admission fees
- mandatory international health/accident insurance
- tips for hotels, meals and other services
Base Cost: $595. USD per person. Small group experience. Maximum: 8 people.
Upgrade: $895. USD per person double occupancy, includes B&B lodging with breakfast, private bath for four nights, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Otherwise, all exceptions noted above apply.
Single Supplement: $1,195. USD for private room and bath.
Optional: Arrive early and/or stay later to discover Mexico City and her incredible museums and restaurants. We will give you a list of recommendations to explore on your own.
Katharsis, 1934 mural by Jose Clemente Orozco, Palacio Bellas Artes
Reservations and Cancellations. A 50% deposit will guarantee your spot. The last payment for the balance is due 45 days before the program start date. Payment shall be made by PayPal. We will send you an itemized PayPal invoice.
Please understand that we make arrangements months in advance of the program. Deposits or payments in full are often required. If cancellation is necessary, please tell us in writing by email. After 45 days before the program starts, no refunds are possible. However, we will make every possible effort to fill your reserved space or you may send a substitute. If you cancel on or before the 45 day date, we will refund 50% of your deposit.
Frida died July 13, 1954, at age 47, not long after she painted these watermelons
Required–Travel Health/Accident Insurance: We require that you carry international accident/health/emergency evacuation insurance. Proof of insurance must be sent at least two weeks before departure. If you do not wish to do this, we ask you email a PDF of a signed and witnessed waiver of liability, holding harmless Norma Hawthorne Schafer and Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC. Unforeseen circumstances happen!
To register, email us at norma.schafer@icloud.com. We accept payment with PayPal only. Thank you.
Frida’s sketchbook and journal. Notice the one deformed leg from childhood polio.
This workshop is produced by Norma Schafer, Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC. We reserve the right to adjust the itinerary and substitute leaders without notice.
A note to Frida from Diego two years after her death … “you live in my heart.”
Paint brushes in Frida’s studio at Casa Azul, exactly as she left them
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A Return to Oaxaca
I’ve returned to Oaxaca after being gone for almost six weeks. It’s warm here — cotton and linen weather. Much warmer than Mexico City where layers of wool are needed for protection from the chill. They tell me today it will be eighty-eight degrees fahrenheit. The snowbirds are happy.
In Teotitlan del Valle, where the last dance of the three-year commitment for this Dance of the Feathers group was on December 12 for the Virgin of Guadalupe, I stayed home. I needed time to absorb what life will be after our mother’s death, what it means to live fully and in service to others, and to reflect on life and death.
My Zapotec friend Abraham tells me, “Todos vamos por el mismo camino.” We all go on the same road.
My Zapotec friend Lupita says, “Es la ley de la vida.” It’s the law of life.
This is comforting as I look out onto the mountains and vast clear blue sky from the rooftop terrace. As I feel the sun on my back. As the sacred mountain Picacho reaches skyward just beyond my reach.
And, then, I walk the streets of the city where Christmas lights wink and twinkle, big tinsel stars suspended from buildings say to me what matters most is now.
I see things with particular focus: a broken windshield sending a million sparkles through the refraction like shooting stars.
Here hot pink juicy flowers bloom in December. I stop for a different view of Santo Domingo church. Take a coffee break at the Oaxaca Coffee Company on the side street nearby where it is quieter.
Next is a stop to the Museo Textil de Oaxaca where a small but exquisite rebozo exhibition shows us the talent of artisans around the world, with a focus on Mexico and the extraordinary ikat cloth woven here.
Finally, I meet the two young artists from India who I am mentoring through a joint program between the governments of Mexico and India, helping them win residency grants.
They arrived in early November, just as I was leaving for California. Nidhi works in interpretive textiles, and her husband Ruchin is a muralist, street and graphic artist. I took them to meet Fernando Sandoval in his studio and my day was complete. They will be here until early February. Still lots to see and do.
Fernando and his team were working on color registrations for a new series by Sergio Hernandez called Alice in Wonderland. Oaxaca has a rich graphic arts community and Sergio is at the leading edge.
Soon, my family will arrive and we will celebrate this season together. I just saw them during my mother’s passing. This visit will be different.
Memoir Writing Workshop in Oaxaca, March 2016
I’ve now moved over almost completely to using the smaller, lightweight Olympus OMD 5 Mark II mirrorless digital camera. I think the results are almost equal to my Nikon. While I’m using the Aperture Priority setting and not full manual, I feel that I have pretty good control over light and shutter speed so I can get the photo I want. But, the experiment continues!
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Posted in Cultural Commentary, Oaxaca Mexico art and culture, Photography, Teotitlan del Valle, Travel & Tourism, Workshops and Retreats
Tagged art, graphic design, Ikat, memoir writing, Mexico, Oaxaca, photography, printmaking, textiles, workshop