The exhibition dealt with the history of educational institutions established in Mexico to educate the children of thousands of Republicans forced into to exile after the Spanish Civil War. Many of these schools are functioning today, the only institutions funded by the Spanish Republic still active. The schools followed the educational model - clearly influenced by the Institución Libre de Enseñanza- developed during the Second Republic. The "colegios del exilio" provided those young exiles with the high quality education that prepared them to effectively carry out the relevant positions that many of them currently occupy in all sectors of Mexican society. In addition, the schools have been and still remain influential centers of Spanish culture, teaching young Mexicans in an environment full of traditional and cultural references.

 

The exhibition provided a historical overview of one aspect of the Republican exile which had not been researched enough and is not well known by the general public. Its nine sections included documents (correspondence, archival documents, books, school books and materials, and photographs) and school furniture from several institutional and private archives in Mexico and Spain.