“Mexico half way of making”: Carlos Chávez and the foundation of the National Institute of Fine Arts (INBA) (1945-1947)

Ana Garduño (2023, [Artículo, Artículo])

I am focusing on the interaction between a cultural agent, Carlos Chávez, and the government elite, related to the circumstances of the enunciation of a public and official organism, INBA (The National Institute of Fine Arts), because I assume that political relations are fundamental to understand a process that endorsed the official culture as an appendage of politics. In spite of its relevance, this subject has not been studied. Based on archival documentation (at the National Archive of Mexico and the archive of INBA) I am examining the cultural policies derived from the foundation of INBA. Due to the current pandemic situation, it was not possible to consult other documental sources. I am formulating that the concept of “high culture” was at the core of a wider conflict between governmental interests and those of representative social actors, and I conclude that this obstacle would have conferred a major political and symbolical importance to the Institute, and consequently, would restrict its budget.

Carlos Chávez INBA Agentes culturales Políticas institucionales Centralización artística HUMANIDADES Y CIENCIAS DE LA CONDUCTA HUMANIDADES Y CIENCIAS DE LA CONDUCTA Foundation of the National Institute of Fine Arts in Mexico (INBA), Cultural agents Institutional policies Artistic centralization