Frida Kahlo: my 100th entry

This is the english version of my exam assignment of Frida Kahlo, based on the question of how the happenings in her life influenced her art work.


Introduccion
Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (06.07.1907 - 13.06.1954) was a famous Mexican painter, better known as Frida Kahlo. To this day Kahlo remains to be a cult phenomenon and her paintings symbols of Mexican life, particularly during the period of the Mexican revolution. Her art style is characterized as nationalistic and surrealistic due to her use of vibrant colors influenced by the indigenous colors. Above all, her paintings expressed her life, and how she perceived the experiences she went through during her 47-year old life. Kahlo is perhaps most known for her self-portraits, which bore marks of both her sexuality as well as her pain. Pain is a central part of Kahlo’s life, both physically and psychologically. In this assignment I will try to write about how the different challenges in Kahlo’s life influenced her art work. I feel it is necessary to narrate bits o her life story in order explain her art expression, because they are very much entwined.

Kalho described her adolescence as happy. She grew up in a house her father built, called “La Casa Azul”, a bit outside of Mexico DF. Kahlo grew up with three sisters, Adriana, Matilde and Cristina, and her parents Guillermo and Matilde Kahlo. According to Kahlo she was the daughter her father felt he could identify the most with. In the biography “Frida” by Hayden Herrera, their relationship was based on the common fascination of art and culture. Frida has described herself being her father’s replacement from his disappointment of never having a son. Kahlo showed from an early age interest in creative art and literature, which was encouraged by her father. He exposed her to the art of photography and brought her on trips in the country to explore the rich natural life.

Family photo
Meanwhile, Kahlo’s happy childhood faced a big downhill when she was infected by the Polio-virus at age six. This bone-disease contributed to Kahlo’s spinal development, which led to that her left leg remained thinner than the right leg during her entire life. Kahlo dealt with this by wearing long, colorful outfits, always sure to cover her small handicap.

“But she was a hurt bird. And because she was hurt, she was different than other children, and often lonely. At the age she should have explored the world outside the family and make friends, she was forced to stay at home. When she became healty and started school again, she was teased and kept outside” (Herrera).

In 1922 Kahlo enrolled at “la Escuela Nacional Preparatoria“ to prosecute their studies toward medicine. She was in a circle of friends composed by promising intellectuals, whom devoted their time to reading contemporary European literature and exchanged opinions about the political situation at the time. During this period the Mexican revolution was coming to an end, but there were still cases of rebellious outbreaks raging in the streets of the capital. It is said that Matilde Kahlo would from time to time hide rebels in the blue house as the military were chasing them in the streets of Coyoatán. Frida would open the windows to let them in to safety.

Her first encounter with the man that was going to become the most important influence her life was at La Preparatoria. She was a teen when she spied at the famous painter Diego Rivera who was working on painting “la Creacion” in the school’s aula. Rivera was known as a notorious womanizer, and the women who posed for him were said to “risk their bodies as much to his physical enjoyment as well as to his eyes”. Frida and her friends witnessed a similar incident as they were spying on him. At the time, Rivera was still married to Lupe Marín. Frida got up on her feet and shouted: “On Guard, Diego, here comes Lupe!” and ran away.

The accident
An afternoon in September 1925, 16-year old Frida found herself in a terrible traffic accident. She was on a public bus with her current boyfriend, Alejandro Gomez Arias, when a tram collided with the wooden bus. There had been a man on the bus who carried golden dust with him. At the impact, the gold spread out in the air and landed on Frida. She was lying on what was left of the platform of the truck, naked, covered in blood and gold. Alejandro, who had only suffered minor injuries, discovered to his dread that a huge iron piece had pierced Frida’s body. The spear-shaped piece had entered her hip and went straight through to her vagina. Alejandro carried her out, and another man pulled the spear out. Her scream made the sirens seem like vague background noise. The accident would affect Frida’s future life severely.

Frida spent one month in the Red Cross hospital before she was allowed to return home to her family in the blue house. She had suffered broken ribs, a broken collarbone, a destroyed right leg, and her spine had broken in three different places. The iron spear had left her with reduced reproductive abilities.
Months of painful and expensive recovery followed. Her body required to be swept in gypsum, which left her lying in her bed for several months. It was during this period of immobilization that Kahlo seriously started experimenting with painting. Her parents provided a special designed staffali to occupy her time. Much of the misery Kahlo felt during this time was due to the isolation and loneliness that the state put her in. Frida expressed her strong feelings through her paintings. She once said: “I paint what I see, that's all I know."


Being stronger after the restitution, Frida went to seek the 41-year old Diego Rivera to consult him with some of her artwork. She admired his work and she wanted his honest opinion of her paintings. She was daring enough to ask him to come down from his scaffold to criticize her paintings. Dazzled by her boldness he obeyed. She told him straight away: “If I'm not good enough, I have to do something else to help my parents.” In Rivera’s biography “My Art, My Life”, the artist reminisces: "They were all three portraits of women. As I looked at them, one by one, I was immediately impressed.” A week later, Rivera visited La Casa Azul to evaluate some more of her paintings. Rivera quickly took Frida under his wings and introduced her to the elite of intellectuals in Mexican at the time. The two of them soon developed a relationship. One day her father took Rivera aside. “I see you are interested in my daughter, no?” “Yes, if I was not I would not have come all the way here to Coyoacán to meet her,” Rivera replied. “She is a devil”, he said. “Yes I know”. “Good, then you are warned,” he said and left.

Together they made a funny couple; he being old and big and she young and small. Nonetheless they married in 1929, when Kahlo was 22 and he was 43. They had a small ceremony with three witnesses, followed by a big fiesta with their nearest friends in la Casa Azul.
Diego and Frida.
Diego
Even though Diego was undeniably quite unattractive, he attracted women like flowers stretches to the sun. It was his personality that drew them to him. He had a sensational humor, was lively and charming, as well as tender, warm and sensual. On top of this, fame has a tendency to attract women. Especially did a certain type of young American women seem to fall for him; as written in Herrara’s biography: “(…) they considered an affair with Diego Rivera as just as a big ‘must’ as a trip to the pyramids of the Teotihuacán.” Moreover, Rivera represented a different approach to woman, on the contrary to the macho-attitude at the time. He enjoyed the company of women, listened to them and appreciated their thoughts, which was rare for women to experience (at the time). His appetite for women’s bodies was also highly present throughout his entire life. Perhaps did Frida think she was the one to capture his love? His ex-wife Lupe Marín, who Frida befriended, once told her that: “Diego does not belong to anyone.”

Frida seemed to tolerate his occasional unfaithfulness, as long as he promised to be loyal to her. Frida too had a few love affairs, also including woman. One of these was to the revolutionary communist Leo Trotsky. It was not until Frida caught Diego sleeping with her younger sister Cristina, she really had had it. In the motion picture “Frida” (2002), Salma Hayek in the role of Kahlo, confronts Rivera saying: “I had two big accidents in my life Diego, the trolley and you... You are by far the worse.” In the movie Rivera replies: “It was just a fuck. I've given more affection in a handshake.”

The movie shows the main altering happenings in their stormy relationship. As mentioned above, Kahlo’s physical pain lay in the accident, whereas the psychological pain she experienced had a lot to do with the relationship to Rivera. The couple divorced in 1039, but remarried the following year. Although her inner pain is a strong factor for all her artwork, Kahlo did not show her depressive sides to the world trough her persona. In times of sickness, she tried to appear bright, made jokes and smiled. She did not want to be a burden to her family when she was sick after the accident.

Abortion
Ever since Kahlo and Rivera became married, Kahlo wished to become a mother. Rivera, on the other hand, already had two children with Lupe Marín and probably two other on the side. Diego’s priorities were first of all this art, then Frida, which would leave a child in third place. In 1930 the newlyweds went to America due to the numerous fresco-assignments Rivera had undertaken there. The couple left for San Francisco and one year later, for New York and Detroit. Kahlo did not like the American life, and found the people both superficial, and the landscape depressing.

Two years into the stay, Kahlo became pregnant. The doctors warned her about the risks this included due to her poor health. But Kahlo was determined to give birth, maybe because she was convinced that giving birth to Rivera’s child would give her a tighter grip around him. Sadly, she experienced a devastating miscarriage 3 ½ months along. She stayed in the hospital for 13 days after the miscarriage. During that time she made two pencil drawings. They are more surrealistic than her previous works, and show a sleeping Frida on a bed, surrounded by curious creatures that represent her dreams, or perhaps the ephemeral sights she had under the narcosis.
Later in her life she had three more miscarriages. It is not foolish to assume that this grief influenced many of her paintings. She preserved a foster in a glass of formaldehyde in her bedroom, and also collected different types of dolls. She also housed numerous pets, including dogs, cats, monkeys, parrots, an eagle, and a deer! When the dolls or the animals would appear in her paintings, critics have speculated if they functioned as a replacement for children.

"My Birth"


Kahlo longed for Mexico, but the return would not be under joyful conditions. Her mother had become ill, and Kahlo and Rivera returned to Mexico. One week later Matilde Kahlo died. On top of this, soon after arriving home, Rivera had an affair with Kahlo’s younger sister, Cristina. The betrayal of trust affected Kahlo hard. In 1939 they filed for divorce, but remarried the following year.

During most of her adult life, Kahlo had been known to the world as the charismatic wife of Diego Rivera. It was not until in the 1980’s that Kahlo’s paintings were recognized. This happened because the artistic movement called “neomexicanismo” reached high popularity. This movement appreciated the values of contemporary Mexican culture.

Fin
By 1950 Kahlo’s health was worsening. Rivera remained by her side and their love endured. In 1954, shortly before Kahlo passed away, she wrote the following fraise in her notes: "I hope the exit is joyful - and I hope never to return - Frida". She never did return, but who knows? Her art will always keep her alive and remind us of her existence.

Earlier this year I visited La Casa Azul at the corner of Calle Londres and Calle Allende. The house now bears the name “Museo Frida Kahlo” at the entrance. It is a woman’s home, with her paintings and belongings, transformed to a museum. The entrance is guarded two giant figures, which looks as though they are in the middle of a conversation. Then you enter a garden with tropical plants and a little pyramid with God images of pre-Columbian time. Over the patio it says “Frida and Diego vivieron en esta casa 1929-1954.” I walked through the house and observed how the surroundings had been composed to the smallest decorative detail. As I read a note Frida had written to Diego on her worktable, it hit me how present they seemed to be. It was as though Frida had just left her pen and was out for a walk.