Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim underwrites two venues (in distinct districts of the city) where his private art collection is open to the general public. There is the organically shaped, massive, iconic art museum in New Polanco Soumaya and Plaza Loreto Soumaya (Soumaya was the given name of his late wife) located in an old, repurposed paper mill.
The most popular of the two (which boasts record-breaking attendance) is the Plaza Carso Collection which displays an eclectic collection of art spanning several centuries, boasting the largest Rodin sculpture collection outside of France, European Masters (such as El Greco, Zurbaran,Tintoretto, Murillo, Michelangelo and da Vinci), as well as modern fare (Dali, Picasso, Renoir, Miro, van Gogh, Monet, among others), with a section devoted to modern Mexican artists (Rivera, Siqueiros, Orozoco, Tamayo, plus much more).
The building itself is Instagram-worthy (designed by Slim’s son-in-law, Fernando Romero), part of a decade old multi-use complex, within the newly reinvented neighborhood, developed by the Slim conglomerate. Definitely something you should see, at least from the outside!
His second collection, located in the south of the city displays valuable historic manuscripts and documents, a Dali sculpture exhibit, large format Colonial paintings, calendar art, posters and constantly changing temporary exhibits.
Each has a different personality given the architecture, the zone, and the curated work. Much like children, each has its strengths and weaknesses, but each is well worth a visit!