Image: Museo Nacional de Arte, Mexico City
Mexico City’s Museo Nacional de Arte (MUNAL) has marked the anniversary of Pablo O’Higgins’ death by drawing attention to the artist’s perspective on everyday life in Mexico. In a brief post, the museum highlighted 'El fumador', an artwork in its collection that portrays the 'peladito' figure of urban Mexico in the 1920s and 1930s.
The museum’s note presents the work as part of a larger reflection on O’Higgins’ artistic legacy and his attention to ordinary life. Rather than framing the piece as an isolated image, MUNAL ties it to the artist’s broader focus on social types and daily experience in modern Mexico. The post specifically connects the work to 'Arte y visualidad en el México moderno', indicating that the artwork can be viewed within that context at the museum.
O’Higgins remains a significant name in Mexican art history, and MUNAL’s reference underscores how his work continues to be used to think about representations of urban identity. By singling out 'El fumador', the museum points viewers toward one object in its holdings as a way into that wider history.
The artwork’s subject is identified by MUNAL as the 'peladito' of the urban Mexico of 1920-1930, a social figure that the museum uses to situate the image in its historical setting. The post does not provide additional curatorial text, but it makes clear that the work belongs to the museum’s collection and is currently associated with 'Arte y visualidad en el México moderno'.
MUNAL shared the reminder on 16 July 2026, on the anniversary of O’Higgins’ death. The museum’s message is concise, but it places emphasis on the artist’s attention to Mexico’s everyday life and on the continued visibility of 'El fumador' within the institution’s modern-art holdings.
