Exhibit celebrates Mexico City's architecture through the lens of Guillermo Kahlo

Mexico's architectural, cultural and religious heritage, captured through the lens of German-Mexican photographer Guillermo Kahlo (1872 – 1941), will be featured at a free public exhibit in the Alameda Central, a public park in Mexico City's Historic Downtown.

Sponsored by Grupo Salinas' cultural foundation, in collaboration with Mexico City's Ministry of Culture, the exhibit “Guillermo Kahlo – Public and Religions Buildings” includes 46 photographs from Grupo Salina's private collection.

The photographers were taken by Guillermo Kahlo at the commission of Porfirio Díaz to celebration Mexico's first 100 years of independence (1910). The idea behind the project was to document the city's buildings that were influenced by European architecture.

The photographs capture the “City of Palaces,” the nickname for Mexico City dubbed by Charles Joseph La Trobe in 1834. In turn, the then Minister of Finances, José Limantour, ordered Kahlo to create a photographic inventory of national buildings and monuments.

The selection of photographs reflects the “golden age” of Porfirio's presidency, when Mexico saw its best period of industrial and economic prosperity, and allows visitors to appreciate and become familiar with Mexico's architecture at the turn of the century.