Palace of Fine arts, Cultural center and opera house in Mexico City, Mexico
The Palacio de Bellas Artes is a theater and cultural center on the west side of Mexico City's historic center. Its pale stone facade rises on a stepped platform, with a broad arched entryway flanked by columns and a carved circular relief above; the dome is covered in yellow, orange and red panels. Inside, a tall hall of orange, salmon and cream marble has curved balconies with gold-toned railings and a dark ribbed dome.
Construction began in 1904 under Italian architect Adamo Boari, with the first stone laid by President Porfirio Díaz for the independence centennial. Soft subsoil and the Mexican Revolution halted work by 1913, when Boari returned to Italy. Federico Mariscal resumed construction in 1932 and finished the Art Deco interior; the palace opened on 29 November 1934.
The stage curtain is a glass mosaic of about a million pieces made by the Tiffany studio in New York, depicting the volcanoes Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl. It is raised lit from behind at the start of performances. The building also houses the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, showing 17 murals by Diego Rivera, Siqueiros and Orozco.
The main hall seats over 1500 people and regularly hosts ballet performances, operas, and orchestra concerts. The upper floor houses rotating art exhibitions and murals that are accessible without an additional ticket.
The building weighs roughly 50000 tons and has sunk about 10 feet (3 meters) into the soft ground since completion. You can see the sinking at the steps before the main entrance, which now sit lower than the surrounding sidewalks.
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