Research Paper On Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo was a very talented Mexican artist that revolutionized art at a very young age. Her work is still idolized and celebrated today and is studied by many artists, institutes of higher education, museums, and fans. Kahlo was born in the town of Coyoacan, Mexico on July the sixth in the year of 1907 (Kettenmann 3). She made around 143 paintings, and out of those 143 paintings, 55 were self-portraits that included symbolism of her physical and emotion pain. Furthermore, in her portraits she used symbolism to express her wounds and sexuality. She use to say: “I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality” (Fuentes 41). Her paintings style include of vibrant colors and was heavily influenced

There is ongoing speculation that Frida Kahlo would have never came to be as well known if it wasn’t for the marriage to another Famous Mexican painter Diego Rivera. Although both had different styles of painting, Frida Kahlo was being rediscovered by many particular women because a lot of herself inflicting paintings connected to a big audience of feminists. After living under the shadow of her husband she was becoming even more famous than Diego Rivera. Frida Kahlo experienced a lot of adversity throughout her entire life. Many of the events she experienced reflected all of her art work. In order to understand who Frida Kahlo was, it is important to understand first, about her accidents , second, her relationship with Diego, Lastly, her Art

Recognized for her eccentric, vivid paintings, Frida Kahlo was one of Mexico’s most notable artists. While observers may find themselves mesmerized by her work, some may not realize the intimacy and profound emotion behind each painting. Kahlo was an artist who utilized painting as an outlet for the physical and emotional suffering she endured throughout her life. From health complications to a troublesome marriage, these adversities would influence Frida’s painting style and content. Decades after her death, her expressive artwork continues to illustrate the vigor and beauty of emotion.

Throughout her career, Frida had shown many different themes of her life through her paintings. It seems clear, through analyzation of her paintings, that Frida lived something of a double life. Frida paints herself in distinctly different ways at times, sometimes she is a beautiful woman with strength like iron, and sometimes she is a frail damsel who has been broken already and will be broken again. Contrasting paintings include Self Portrait with Monkeys (Kahlo, 1) and Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace, Diego and I (Kahlo, 1) and The Love Embrace of the Universe, the Earth (Mexico), Me, Diego, and Mr. Xolotl (Kahlo, 1). All of these paintings show that not only is there a contrast in her personality, in fact, Frida’s is actually two different people, as she paints it.

During their travel the street car they were riding in was hit by a bus and a steel handrail went straight through her hip, fracturing her pelvis and spine. She endured a long painful recovery and coped by painting. Frida said “I paint myself because I am often alone and I am the subject I know best.” After painting a few pieces she met back up with Diego to view her work. They clicked immediately and go married only a year later. They had a very rough relationship. They would travel around everywhere and Diego would have affairs which left Frida heartbroken, but she always stayed. Due to her fractured pelvis she was unable to have children and encountered 2 miscarriages which killed her emotionally. (Frida Kahlo Biography 2)

Frida Kahlo, she never intended to become a painter. Kahlo was aspired to become a doctor as a young woman, but after a horrible accident at the age of 18, it left her mentally, as well as physically scared for life. This event had totally changed her life forever. The theme in almost all of Frida’s painting was her own life. Her paintings were based on events took place during her lifetime. As we can see in many of Frida’s paintings, especially in her self-portraits, it expresses her own personal emotions along with feelings about an event that happened in her life, such as her physical condition, her lack of ability to conceive children of her own, her ideology of life and nature, and most important of all, it was her unstable relationship with her husband Diego. Somewhere between the movement of surrealism, realism and symbolism in the art of Frida Kahlo, she was able to bring out tenderness, femininity, reality, cruelty and suffering within her paintings.

Frida attended a National Preparatory School in 1922 hoping to become a doctor. At the same school, she saw Diego Rivera, painting “The Creation” (“Biography.com”). Frida was inspired and approached Diego with her compliments. He told her to go home and return with a painting in one week for him to judge. When she did as he asked, he was very impressed with her artistic ability and they became close (“Frida Kahlo: Biography”). Their relationship progressed and then Frida got into her terrible bus accident.

She expressed her physical and emotional pain, passion, and sorrow through her paintings. She painted her own reality rather than dreams and nightmares. Kahlo’s paintings are the story of her life. She was famous for painting surrealism, cubism, symbolism, modern art, and magical realism. According to the article Frida Kahlo and her paintings, “She has approximately 143 paintings and 55 of them consist of self-portraits” (FridaKahlo.org.).

They say, “pictures are worth a thousand words” and I believe when it comes to my chosen artist, Frida Kahlo, her portraits could not be a better example of that saying. All of the 200 paintings done by Frida Kahlo say more about her life and what she experienced than any article I have ever read about her. From her health issues and violent bus accident to her tumultuous marriage with her husband, Diego Rivera is all an influence in her paintings.

More than 60 years have passed since the death of Frida Kahlo, a Surrealist Mexican painter. Frida Kahlo’s many talents were overshadowed by her husband’s fame during the course of her life. Yet, it wasn’t until her death and the early 1970’s where Frida’s artistic effort started to surpass that of her political and creative husband. Her biography is both depressive and particularly interesting. Many of her private moments and experiences are shared in her greatest pieces of art. Some of those valuable masterpieces contain her cherished possessions, in addition to them being the things that established her popularity and appreciation among distinct genders, cultures and ages around the world. Knowing this, it was in my interest to devote some quality time and effort to this woman whose life immediately captivated my attention and inspired me to understand and endure life as a woman.

In 1940 Frida Kahlo painted a self portrait after her divorce from Diego Rivera which left the world astonished because it was unforseen. This was one of her boldest works and examplified her pain to the viewer. Frida Kahlo was considered one of Mexico´s greatest artists. She was born in 1907 and died in 1954. She suffered alot in life, but one of the main accidents that transformed her life forever was the bus collision. On september 17, 1925 Frida and her boyfriend Alex Arias were on the bus to Coyoacn Mexico. As the bus driver began to turn on to Calzada de Tlpan, a street trolley approached. The bus driver tried to pass in front of the turning streetcar cautiously. Unfortunately he did not make it. This resulted in a handrail peircing through Frida´s abdomen. The collision left her in a great deal of pain, and she spent a full three months in a body cast. After months of recovery, Frida was able to learn to walk again but was left unable to have children. She would bare both the physical and emotional scars

Frida Kahlo, who was an amazing self-portrait artist, was born during the Mexican revolution. She used her Mexican heritage to paint herself always keeping a tight grasp on her national identity. In order to understand Kahlo and her paintings the historical and political factors that she lived in must be taken in to consideration. Frida’s works of art reflect her life experiences, physical and emotional pain that she felt throughout her lifetime. Frida also utilizes her personal life, health and sometimes even social affairs to relate to her Mexican culture and politics. Kahlo’s paintings are very powerful and relevant to Mexican nationalism and her political views in the social, cultural, and political aspects of Mexico.

Mexican artist Frida Kahlo’s fame only grew larger after her death, bringing her art as well as her personal life into museums, books, and also movies. Through her life Kahlo dealt with various illness, tumultuous relationships, and was even involved in some political movements. Consequently, her art was influenced by all the experiences as seen and felt through her own eyes and flesh.

4. Frida Kahlo essentially became an international cultural icon, honored by many people, especially in Mexico. Her artwork withholds visual symbolism of all kinds of emotional and physical pain and most importantly she incorporated indigenous culture and her depiction of the female experience. Including illustrating the feelings of death, loneliness, pain, including the pain of miscarriages, failed marriage, and the aftermath of tragic accidents. Through her imagery, she was able to portray her life experiences. She would include specific elements that symbolized something greater. Throughout the process of analyzing all different aspects of Frida Kahlo’s paintings, it provided a deeper understanding to each painting.

Frida Kahlo’s “The Two Fridas” is a manifestation of heartbreak, inner human pain, rejection of colonialism, and emotional journey. An oil on canvas made in 1939 in the midst of Frida Kahlo’s divorce from Diego Rivera, this painting embodied Frida Kahlo’s progression at this time in her life, dealing with what she is and what she wishes to be; as well as setting out how she wishes to do it. An ode to melancholy and overcoming adversity, “The Two Fridas” is a universal, eternal reminder of human capability.