She Survived A Tragic Bus Accident When She Was Younger, And While She Was On Bedrest, She Turned To Artwork And Became One Of The Most Influential Female Artists To Ever Live
Frida Kahlo is considered one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. So many people have seen her portraits hung in some of the most famous art galleries or reposted on social media. But do you know the full story of legendary artist Frida Kahlo’s life?
Frida was born in Mexico City in 1907. During her younger years, Frida faced many challenges that she had to overcome, like when she contracted polio at only six years old, which crippled her right leg and gave her a limp.
She started developing a love for the arts as a young girl, sketching and working with her father, who was a photographer. However, it wasn’t until after a tragic accident that she took up painting.
When she was 18, Frida was on a bus returning home from school in 1925 when a streetcar crashed into it. Several of the passengers on board died. Frida was found with an iron handrail pierced through her pelvis like a sword, but she miraculously survived.
Although Frida lived to see another day after the crash, she endured years of torment with her battered and recovering body. She had to have at least 30 surgeries, as her abdomen, pelvis, uterus, legs, spine, etc., all suffered intense injuries.
Frida’s body was never the same after the accident. She had to be bedridden for a long time, and she began to express her pain and emotions through artwork, particularly paintings.
Frida was also a very politically active person. When she was 21 years old, she joined the Mexican Communist Party. At one of their gatherings, she was reintroduced to artist Diego Rivera in 1928.
Although he was 21 years older than her and her parents didn’t approve of their relationship, Frida and David got married in 1929.
Her relationship with Diego certainly didn’t help her heal, as he was often unfaithful. They tried to have a child, but Frida lost the baby, which may have been because of her former injuries.
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She turned to alcohol and drugs but still painted many autobiographical pieces, including her iconic self-portraits that captured her experiences.
Frida and Diego traveled a lot during their marriage, which was far from perfect. They collaborated on a few projects, but Frida often had to worry about making her voice and work known.
In 1938, when she was 31, Frida opened her first solo exhibition in NYC. The next year, she opened an exhibition in Paris as well. She became friends with famous artists, and her work was finally beginning to get the recognition it deserved.
In 1939, Frida and Diego divorced after dealing with infidelity on both sides. She then moved back to Mexico City to live at La Casa Azul, her family home, now the official Frida Kahlo Museum.
Over the following years, inspired by her rising success, Frida would create some of her most famous pieces of artwork, including The Two Fridas in 1939 and Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird in 1940. In addition, she opened more exhibitions in Mexico City, San Francisco, and New York.
Tragically, in the 1940s and early 1950s, Frida’s health continued to decline. She had to arrive at some of her exhibitions in a bed and eventually was in a state where she had one of her legs amputated and could no longer stand on her own.
Frida’s final public appearance was at a protest to overthrow the President of Guatemala. On July 13th,1954, she passed away at her home.
Frida Kahlo had to live through a tremendous amount of pain and agony in her life. Although she didn’t get to achieve everything she wanted in her life, her everlasting impact on the art world will continue to shape young artists.
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