Frida Kahlo is one of the most famous female artists in the world. Her story is one of vision, single-mindedness, resilience and independence, traits that have inspired women for generations.
Despite having painted fewer than 150 works and having died aged just 47,
Her body became an extension of her art; she wore flowers in her hair, colourful traditional Mexican dress from her Oaxacan heritage and traditional jewellery. She often emphasised her monobrow and moustache in her paintings and, when in her youth, occasionally dressed like a man, in suits.The show at AGSA includes many shots of Kahlo and Rivera by some of the world’s top photographers of the time, but the focus was on the flamboyant woman who attracted their lenses like moths to a flame.
“There is something about her work that speaks to audiences,” Curtin says. “Her star continues to rise and doesn’t seem to wane as we move through the decades. Her art speaks to us and each new generation.”Curtin says Kahlo’s work reveals something fundamental about the human condition. “They are self-portraits that are so revealing and unflinching. ‘Look or don’t look, I don’t care,’ she seems to say.
“[Kahlo] was a private person and also a very happy person, she loved to party, she loved people. She was very conscious of her art and she did things back then that no one did. She went to her last exhibition on a stretcher, she got divorced, she was bisexual... She’s just a fighter,” Carranza says. “She was never a martyr. I wish people wouldn’t turn her into a martyr because she wasn’t.”
Detail from Frida Kahlo’s ‘Diego on my Mind ’ from 1943. The work will feature at AGSA’s new exbibition.While she was laid up after the first of many surgeries throughout her life, in an effort to cheer her up and keep boredom at bay, her photographer father gave her some paints and placed a mirror above her head, suggesting she try using them. It was a fortuitous idea, spurring her to focus on art, which provided not only a focus but cathartic; it was the beginning of a truly brilliant career.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Don’t miss this rare chance to see Frida Kahlo in AustraliaFor the first time, a comprehensive collection of works by the Mexican painter, her husband, and their contemporaries is being shown in Australia.
Read more »
Weather forecast Australia: A chilly start for Australia's shortest day of the yearToday marks the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, making it both the shortest day and the longest night of the year across Australia. 9News
Read more »
Weather forecast Australia: A chilly start for Australia's shortest day of the yearToday marks the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, making it both the shortest day and the longest night of the year across Australia. 9News
Read more »
Air Force commander to take on hackers as Australia’s first cybersecurity bossA senior Air Force commander will become Australia’s first cybersecurity tsar, as the federal government responds to one of the biggest data breaches in the country’s history
Read more »
Shadow Housing Minister blames Labor’s migration policy for housing crisisShadow Housing Minister Michael Sukkar says there is no doubt Australia has a housing crisis. “What we’ve seen, particularly since this government has been in office, is lower housing approvals, lower number of houses being built, first home buyers down, and rent is up,” Mr Sukkar told Sky News Australia. “At the same time, we have seen the government drastically increasing migration. “You can’t propose to drastically increase the number of migrants we are bringing into Australia without any clue about where they are going to live.”
Read more »
Iconic Australian chocolate company collapsesAustralia’s oldest chocolate company Ernest Hillier Chocolates has collapsed into voluntary administration again, with dozens of employees set to lose jobs. 7NEWS
Read more »