Theatrical Adaptation

Diego Rivera's Mural # 11

In the movie “Cradle Will Rock,” Rockefeller hires Diego Rivera to paint a mural on the wall of his building. However, after Rockefeller and Rivera had finalized the terms of the agreement, Rivera changed his original sketches and painted controversial issues and communism. Rockefeller, therefore, refuses to accept his work and has the painting destroyed. Some people think that he had no right to destroy art. When this was discussed in class many people thought art is a public property and belongs to everyone. However, I think that in the case of Rockefeller and Rivera, this was not the case. I feel that Rockefeller had every right to declare the work unsatisfactory and have it destroyed.

When making a business transaction, all parties involved must come to some sort of agreement. There is a stage in the process that involves defining the terms upon which the agreement or trade is made. In Rockefeller’s case it was a painting in exchange for a large sum of money. Rockefeller agreed to pay a certain sum in exchange for a certain kind of painting. As is the case in any bargain, both sides of the exchange are obligated to fulfill the requirements. If one person changes the deal or fails to meet the conditions then the contract is void. This is exactly what happened. Rockefeller saw that Rivera was not painting according to the agreed-upon sketches. Therefore, he refused to pay Rivera for the mural.

Another reason why I think Rockefeller had a right to destroy the work is because the wall upon which the mural was painted still belonged to Rockefeller. He can do anything with his wall or his property that he wishes. Just because Rivera painted on it does not mean it belonged to him. If an artist paints on the side of a building at his own free will, it does not mean the building belongs to that person. The fact that Rockefeller destroyed the mural was probably fairer to Rivera than if he had kept it. If Rockefeller left the painting there without paying Rivera he would essentially be benefiting from Rivera’s service without fulfilling his part of the bargain. Therefore, I think that Rockefeller was not wrong for smashing the mural because Rivera did not meet the requirements of the deal and because the wall still belonged to Rockefeller.

posted by Layne @ 2:35 AM