Alfredo Guati Rojo National Watercolor Museum

The museum and the modern history of watercolor in Mexico is the work of artist Alfredo Guati Rojo. He studied art at the San Carlos Academy in the 1930s, graduating with a master’s in 1940. While he studied all aspects of art, he stated that he was always drawn to watercolor painting. After graduation, he decided to teach short courses for those with inclination but not the means for a formal art education. This became an art institute which offered courses in ceramics, fashion design, furniture design, and jewelry making as well as the fine arts. In 1957, it rented a large house in Colonia Roma .[1]


In the 1940s and 1950s, watercolor began to be recognized as a technique with its own particular qualities with artists such as Ricardo Sierra, Carmen Jimenez Labora and Luis G. Serrano dedicated to it.[2] However, many art gallery owners at the time refused to show watercolor works, as it was considered to be a minor art, especially compared to oil painting, as it was associated with lithographs, and small portraits.[1] Guati Rojo established a space in the institute in Colonia Roma dedicated to the showing of watercolors in 1964, called the Salon Anual de Acuarela (Annual Salon of Watercolors). These shows began to attract attention and favorable reviews, and allowed artists to sell paintings. It was renamed the Salon Nacional de Acuarela (National Salon of Watercolors) in 1967 and dedicated itself to the promotion of both Mexican and international watercolor painting.[2]

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