Benigno Montoya Muñoz

Benigno Montoya Muñoz (1865–1929), also known as Benigno Montoya, was a Mexican architect, painter, and sculptor. He is best known for his funerary art and sculpture in Durango, Mexico. In 2002, his work at the Pantéon de Oriente was honored with the establishment of the Museo de Arte Funerario Benigno Montoya.

Biography Benigno Montoya Muñoz (1865–1929) was a Mexican architect, sculptor and painter. A skilled quarry master whose sculptures and funerary works are considered to be distinguished and unique, Montoya Muñoz started an apprenticeship working alongside his father at the age of twelve. After joining the family business, it soon became apparent that Montoya Muñoz had a talent for creating sculptures in the Neo-classical and Neo-gothic style (he favored the neo-gothic style) that were popular in Mexico at the time. Throughout his life, Montoya Muñoz would work primarily on religious buildings, turning to funerary work after the Mexican Religious Revolution of the early 1900s prevented his ability to work on cathedrals and temples.

Early life Born to Jesús Montoya and Hesiquia Muñoz Montoya, Benigno Montoya Muñoz was born in the Mexican state of Zacatecas on February 13, 1865. Soon after his birth, Montoya Muñoz’s father, Jesus Montoya, moved the family to the neighboring state of Durango to the west, a place that Montoya Muñoz would consider his hometown. The Montoya family had a long history of stonemason and quarry sculpture artists. Benigno Montoya Muñoz joined his family in this tradition when he turned twelve and began to learn the art of stone sculpture under his father, Jesús.

Family Parents were Jesús Montoya and Hesiquia Muñoz Montoya. It is known that Montoya Muñoz had at least one sister, Teresa Montoya Muñoz. He married Virginia De La Cruz Salazar and had at least one son with her, Francisco Montoya De La Cruz, an artist as well. Before the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920, Montoya Muñoz would work on temples and cathedrals, but during the Mexican Revolution it would become harder to find commissioned work with the Catholic Church. Financial hardship had Montoya Muñoz looking elsewhere for work and he began taking commissions in funerary work, where he continued to excel in his career, until his death in 1929.

Notable works

Temples and cathedrals

Palacio del Arzobispado, 1885: Chapel and Facade. Many of the stone works that have been maintained and best represent the original work of Montoya Muñoz belong to the 19th century elite class of Durango: the family chapels. Montoya Muñoz's work at Pantéon de Oriente consists mainly of angels, many of which are carved to a true representation of the person buried underneath. Although Montoya Muñoz completed more than 300 sculptors in Pantéon de Oriente, each one is distinct and personal to the deceased.