Profile: Frida Kahlo

Latina heritage week continues here at New Moon! Today we present a profile of the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo who lived in the first half of the 20th century.

Frida was born in 1907 in Mexico. Often known as the wife of fellow painter Diego Riviera, she gained widespread recognition for her work in the 1980s after her work began to get published in books.

Frida faced a difficult childhood. After surviving the polio disease, she intended to study medicine and was enrolled in a prepatory school. However everything changed after she was in a tragic bus accident which left her body shattered. She taught herself to paint while in recovery from the accident, beginning her life as an artist.

She primarily painted brightly colored self-portraits and still lifes. Her work is often connected to surrealism, which uses the elements of surprise and the unexpected. Frida was also influenced by traditional folk art, which is evident through her use of bright colors and flattened form in her paintings. She died in 1954 at the age of 47.

You can read more about Frida here at NewMoonGirls.com. You can also see examples of her artwork at fridakahlo.com!