Frida Post

Since we didn't have time to discuss the reading for "Frida," this post should address the two articles. What points do you find especially pertinent? Do you agree with their assessments of "Fridamania"? Why do you think Frida Kahlo suddenly became so popular--popular enough to generate a whole "Frida industry" and a major motion picture?

Both articles, “Frida Icon: The Return of the Kahlo Cult” and “The Trouble With Frida Kahlo” analyze the artist’s sudden and meteoric rise to fame, and the factors in both her art and her life that contributed to her success. At the heart of her rise to fame was society’s need for an empowered, fascinating, and unashamed woman artist who could shake off the pervious stereotypes of “suffering femininity” and instead represent the modern, strong woman. The Village Voice article quotes Julie Taymor, the director of Frida, as saying that “people always think of her as the tortured artist, like Saint Sebastian with arrows going through him”. Taymor wished to update this impression, and to show the empowered personality and unrestrained sexuality of the artist, to lift her up out of the stereotypical constructs of woman artists.
In a day and age where pop stars and celebrities are the pinnacle of beauty and perfection, where women are told to desire blond hair, blue eyes, and the perfect figure, Frida represents something very important. By embracing, even highlighting her imperfections, and unabashedly displaying her sexuality and political views, Frida became the perfect icon of liberated women. She did not shy away from portraying the gruesome or morbid aspects of her psyche, nor did she gloss over her physical imperfections. In fact, she highlighted her unibrow and mustache. Her own frailty, loneliness, and pain were frequently the subject of her works, subjects which are not difficult to relate to. She was also unabashed in her political views as well as her sexual conquests, pursuing both men and women. This aspect of her life also makes her relate-able to a new feminist audience, who wished to throw off the restraints of typical feminine roles within marriage. Frida did not sit by quietly while her husband carried on affairs; she did the same as well, not sitting by and quietly suffering. In all of these ways, Frida embodied the perfect archetype of a modern, strong woman. Not only were her paintings magnetic, mysterious, and surreal, she herself became a larger than life figure and a representation of the modern, liberated woman.