Mexico’s (and My) Obsession with Frida Kahlo
Everywhere you go in Mexico, you will see Frida Kahlo. Her face, famous for the lovely uni-brow and direct, badass stare, is imprinted on walls, bags, posters, and t-shirts. In San Miguel de Allendes, a town known for it’s small art scene, a one-story Frida Kahlo puppet walks the zocolo on summer evenings as tourists snap pictures and then stop to drink Pacifico in nearby bars. Wild in her green floral dress and hoop earrings, Frida is with us. She is Mexico’s feminist icon.
And there is something to be said about the artist Frida Kahlo and her strife-filled life. Because it is not necessarily her paintings that we remember, it is her extraordinary LIFE STORY that gets to us.
I recommend watching the movie: Frida. Especially if you like movies about strong women or if you just like strong women in general. And artists. And if you are going to visit Mexico, the central states, it is a must. Frida Kahlo was a Mexican painter and she was married to another famous artist, Diego Rivera. Both Diego and Frida were known for being political activists, communist supporters and overall rebels. Diego was also known to be a difficult husband, and could not keep his hands off other women. Thankfully, the couple both had extramarital affairs.
But Frida! In some ways, her life is most interesting because of all of her physical disadvantages and setbacks. She was lucky to be born into a fairly well-to-do family. As a girl, she developed Polio which left her with a bad leg and one weak foot. Then when she was a teenager, she survived a horrible trolley accident which caused her to be bedridden and in pain for many years. She dealt with physical therapists and specialists who tried to help her regain her health and body, but she endured a lot: body casts and braces and traction contraptions, it was the 1920’s. After all of this though, the spirit of the woman was amazing. She was a beautiful fighter. And she could drink and smoke with the best of ‘em.
Diego, on the other hand, was kind of a self-absorbed asshole. A typical artist, some might say, with a few endearing qualities. His love for Frida was powerful. He believed in her as an artist. Nevertheless, he was a womanizer. When Frida was away, he seduced Frida’s sister. This conflict caused them to split, but years later they remarried.
Frida was an eccentric when it came to her style. Influenced by the traditional dress of women from her mother’s home state of Oaxaca, she wore layers of bright colors and long skirts over her corsets and braces. She accessorized with beaded jewelry and silver. I think much of the obsession with Frida is connected to her extraordinary look, her chosen style.
When you visit the Casa Azul, Frida’s old home in Coyoacan, Mexico City, you’ll see her studio, the house, the gardens, the clothes she wore and of course, her art. The house, now a museum, shows video clips of Frida throughout her life. In every shot, you can see her spirit and intensity, the feminist icon that so many people, Mexican or not, adore.
