Frida Kahlo (2020)

A couple of years ago I came across a nude photo of Frida Kahlo. I guess she did a lot of experimenting in the roaring 1920s / 1930s. I was intrigued by her body position: reclining and amidst two cats, completely demanding the camera in a relaxed way though.

I did a lot of thinking what to do in the painting compared to the drawing ‘Sans titre – 11-10-18’ I made earlier. The scale is much bigger so one can show more. What story to tell? A biopic or more of a personal opinion on her? To my students I often tell about her: that an artist can be successful employing great imagination without an abundance of refined techniques. The first is necessary, the latter not sufficient on its own.

Reading about her love for stalinism and supporting the ‘Mexicanidad’ I must say that, if those brows only look commanding, her appetite for communism and The Aztecs certainly did make me frown.