Diego Rivera (Mexican, 1886–1957) Detroit Industry, north wall (mural detail), 1932–1933, by Diego Rivera (Mexican, 1886–1957) During the Great Depression, a series of commissions allowed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera to leave his mark on the walls of the United States. William Valentiner, the director of the Detroit Institute of Arts, commissioned him to paint the walls of the museum's classical Garden Court. Edsel Ford, the president of the Ford Motor Company, agreed to fund the project and became a great champion of the artist. The vast factory Ford built on the Rouge River, where Rivera spent days sketching, provided the images for the mural’s largest panels, including the one reproduced for this 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle.