Three Insights from the “José María Velasco: A View of Mexico” Curator Talk
December 16, 2026—Many great artists have been celebrated only after their deaths, their brilliance recognized belatedly. José María Velasco—or as he’s known in Mexico, el maestro Velasco—is not one of them.
Revered in his own time and still regarded as one of the most important landscape painters in the Americas, Velasco holds a central place in Mexico’s artistic and cultural history. His influence spanned generations, with Francisco Goitia and Diego Rivera numbering among his students.
On October 5, 2025, Valéria Piccoli, Mia’s Ken and Linda Cutler Chair of the Arts of the Americas and Curator of Latin American Art, was joined by Dexter Dalwood and Daniel Sobrino Ralston, co-curators of the exhibition, to examine Velasco’s artistic practice. Here are three key takeaways, along with the full curator talk.
Capturing a Landscape—and a National Identity
While his depictions of the Valley of Mexico—often painted from elevated, panoramic perspectives—are undeniably breathtaking, Velasco wasn’t simply painting beautiful vistas. The artist was shaping how Mexico saw itself, and how the world would see Mexico, during a period of dramatic political and social transformation. His paintings offer early visual forms of nation building.
Velasco wove together signs of human intervention in the landscape with symbols central to Mexican identity. In The Valley of Mexico from the Hill of Santa Isabel, Mexico City is visible in the background, while in the foreground, a nopal, a small prickly pear cactus, appears with an eagle clutching its prey. This emblem, visible on the Mexican flag, alludes to an Aztec myth that the nation’s capital would be established where an eagle was seen perched upon a nopal.
Artistry Meets Scientific Precision
Velasco’s skill set transcended painting—he was a trained naturalist who studied geology, botany, zoology, and topography. His scientific background profoundly influenced his art, setting him apart from other 19th-century landscape painters. Rather than painting a romanticized version of the landscape, Velasco meticulously documented it, leaning into what Dalwood calls a “new Mexican realism.”
His attention to perspective, geological formations, and plant species demonstrates a deep rigor and commitment to accuracy.
“He had this ability to transform a particular historical moment into something which you really have to think about and negotiate as your eye travels across the surface of the painting,” says Dalwood.
His work invites viewers to appreciate both the aesthetic beauty of the land and its ecological complexity.
A Bit of Creative License—and Time Travel
Velasco saw the landscape as constantly in flux: landmarks, and even natural markers, faded, disappeared, and were replaced. He seamlessly folded volcanoes, historic sites, lakes, factories, and train lines into a single visual field. Each of his landscapes is arranged to serve the composition—they are crafted, convincing fictions. Standing before one of these large-scale paintings compels the viewer to consider history, the present moment, and the shifting nature of the land itself. Velasco painted not only what he saw, but what once was.
About the Exhibition
“José María Velasco: A View of Mexico” celebrates one of the greatest 19th-century landscape painters in the Americas. Trained at the Academia de San Carlos, Mexico’s prestigious fine arts academy, Velasco became an influential figure in his home country of Mexico, much like his contemporaries Albert Bierstadt and Frederic Church in the United States. His impressive panoramic views of the Valley of Mexico—home of modern-day Mexico City—are painted with exquisite detail, honoring both the country’s rich historical heritage and the rapid modernization it underwent in the late 1800s.
Organized by the National Gallery, London, and Mia, the exhibition showcases paintings from renowned museums in Mexico and the Czech Republic. It offers an unprecedented opportunity for Mia’s audience to view Velasco’s works, as many have seldom been displayed outside their home countries.
“José María Velasco: A View of Mexico” is on view through January 4, 2026, in the Bell Family Decorative Arts Court.