FRIDA KAHLO

Frida Kahlo was one of the greatest artists of her time. She painted mostly self-portraits after (1) ________ in a bus accident. In 1929, Frida Kahlo and famous Mexican muralist Diego Rivera married but their marriage did not go well. Kahlo divorced Rivera in 1939. They did not stay divorced for long, and remarried in 1940. The couple continued to lead largely separate lives, both becoming involved with other people over the years. Frida Kahlo’s life was the subject of a 2002 film entitled Frida, (2) _______ and Alfred Molina as Diego Rivera. The family home where Frida Kahlo was born and grew up, later referred to as the Blue House or Casa Azul, was opened as a museum in 1958. Hayden Herrera’s 1983 book on Frida Kahlo, Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo, helped to stir up interest in the artist. (3) __________ Kahlo’s childhood, accident, artistic career, marriage to Diego Rivera, association with the communist party and love affairs. While she never considered herself a Surrealist, Kahlo became friends with one of the primary figures in that artistic and literary movement, Andre Breton, in 1938. That same year, (4) __________ at a New York City gallery, selling about half of the 25 paintings shown there. In 1939, Kahlo went to live in Paris for a time. There she exhibited some of her paintings and developed friendships with such artists as Marcel Duchamp and Pablo Picasso. After Kahlo’s death, the feminist movement of the 1970s led to renewed interest in her life and work, as Kahlo was viewed by many as an icon of female creativity. Here are a couple of her most famous paintings: ‘Frieda and Diego Rivera’ In this painting, Kahlo lightly holds her husband’s hand as he grasps a palette and paintbrushes with the other — a stiffly formal pose revealing the couple’s future relationship. ‘The Two Fridas’ It is one of Kahlo’s most famous works. The painting shows two versions of the artist sitting side by side, with both of their hearts exposed. One Frida is dressed nearly all in white and has a damaged heart and spots of blood on her clothing. The other wears bold-colored clothing and has an intact heart. These figures are believed to represent “unloved” and “loved” versions of Kahlo. (Adapted from Biography website)