First the first time in more than a half-century, a massive painting—given as a wedding gift in 1929 by the Mexican president to newlyweds Charles and Anne Lindbergh—is available for public viewing at the Missouri History Museum.
Now through Monday, Sept. 2, “Flores Mexicanas,” a monumental, 9-by-12-foot painting by renowned Mexican artist Alfredo Ramos Martinez, is featured as the centerpiece of the exhibit, “Flores Mexicanas: A Lindbergh Love Story.”
Martinez is said to have worked on the painting for 15 years before it was purchased by then-Mexican President Emilio Portes Gill, who presented it as a gift to the Lindberghs on the occasion of their May 1929 wedding.
For years, the location of the painting had been unknown to art scholars. The Lindberghs had entrusted care of the masterpiece—along with many of his other gifts and awards—to the Missouri Historical Society, where it has been safely stored for decades.
Author Reeve Lindbergh, daughter of Charles and Anne, says the project means a great deal to her.
“I’m so very grateful to the Missouri History Museum for taking on this project, and for bringing forward this brief, bright period of my parents’ life together so that other people can understand it—and them—a little better. It means a great deal to me.” Reeve Lindbergh said. “I have been so touched and so pleased as I have learned more and more about the “Flores Mexicanas” exhibition. I have also deeply appreciated the Missouri History Museum’s thoughtfulness in keeping me informed of the process.”
In addition to the painting, the exhibit examines the little-known connection between a poet, a pilot, a president and a painter—a connection that altered the course of aviation history and left a lasting legacy on U.S.-Mexico relations. Mexico was significant to the Lindberghs as the place where their love story began. For the Mexican government, the gift was a chance to impress the daughter and son-in-law of the United States’ respected ambassador to Mexico, Dwight Morrow—Anne’s father.
Some 20 other Lindbergh artifacts are also on display, including the couple’s flight jackets; a floor globe marked with lines drawn by Charles Lindbergh to show the routes he and Anne traveled together from 1929 to 1935; and Hubbard medals awarded to Charles and Anne for their individual accomplishments in aviation.
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