Diego Rivera is one of, if not the most, famous artist to ever come out of South America. His influence can be seen not only to his own country, but also all over the world. Rivera was born on December 13, 1886, the date of one of many Mexican religious festivals, in Guanajuato. He was the first in a set of twins. His twin brother's name was José Carlos and he died at the age of one and a half. As a matter of fact, his whole name was actually Diego Mariade la Concepcion Juan Nepolmuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodriguez. Fortunately, in later years Rivera did not have to use all of his names when he signed his artwork. On his early pieces he used the name Diego Mariade Rivera to distinguish himself from his father, though shortened it to simply Diego Rivera later on.
             From a very early age, Rivera showed signs of tremendous artistic talent. In 1889, well before his third birthday, he drew a surprisingly accurate picture of a train, complete with a steam engine and a trainman's car. This piece of art hangs in a Mexican museum to this day. As a child, he would decorate everything from the walls to the furniture in his house with his art. As to not disturb his son's incredible talent, but also save his home, Rivera's father set up a special room in the house in which all of the walls were covered with blackboards. This way his son could draw all he wanted and then erase it when he pleased.
             In addition to his artistic abilities, Rivera gained a talent in making people angry. From childhood until the end of his life he seemed to take great pleasure in the anger of others. Despite this, Rivera was an excellent student. In 1896, he achieved the highest score on the year-end exams. Later, in 1898, he graduated with honors from elementary school, just four years after entering. The only part of the curriculum that Rivera lacked in was his training in Christian religious matters...