Jodi Roberts traces New York City's impact on the work of Diego Rivera.

Roberts writes: "Fascinated by modern technology, [Rivera] felt an immediate connection to the city, which at the time was in the throes of one of the largest construction booms in U.S. history, known as the skyscraper race." She continues by noting that "Rivera [also] combined his homage to the city's physical makeup with a stinging critique of its social and economic inequity.

Diego Rivera: Murals for The Museum of Modern Art is on view at MoMA through May 14, 2012.