A HISTORY ON FRIDA
On March 6th, my fiancé and I celebrated our 3rd year anniversary. I woke up feeling really grateful that I had spent another year of my life with someone that I really love and care about. We had decided a few days earlier that we’d split the day and plan for each other something special to do.
After sharing corn beef hash and pancakes we walked over to my favorite museum in NYC, The Brooklyn Museum! We were there to experience the Frida Kahlo exhibit. Can I just say that this is one of the most comprehensive and well curated exhibits I have ever gone to?
the one I have is a reprint in white and yellow from one of Peralta’s shows
I realized within 15 minutes of the exhibit that I never really knew anything about Frida, short of seeing her face plastered across many items. I even have a Frida con Rolos from the Peralta Project hanging in my living room. The way Frida has been commercialized makes me think of Che Guevara. They’ve both become pop culture icons, but the substance of who they were isn’t often shared or it’s often forgotten. Frida had a lot of layers to her some of which were not too great. It was a reminder that women are complex, and that they’ve been complex for centuries.
I was extremely surprised to learn that she was a communist and that she was very involved in the local movement in Mexico. I always had the idea that she was an activist of sorts but this part I didn’t expect.
Some of my favorite parts about the exhibit were the deep dive into her family history, learning that her father was a photographer and that she often helped him in his studio. The fact that she was disabled, which I had some knowledge of but did not fully understand everything that she physically went through. Her feelings towards the U.S. and the ‘gringos’ — very much a love/hate relationship with the states.
I especially enjoyed the entire section on her personal style. Learning that she was fluid with what she wore, including a suit in a family portrait as a teen, made me admire her strong sense of conviction in who she was as an individual. Her tops and skirts were of beautiful prints and fabric. Her jewelry and makeup were all meticulously and deliberately chosen to let the world know exactly who she was. And even when people in the street (in the states) would stop, stare and comment it didn’t make her want to wear something different. It didn’t make her want to change herself. That’s really powerful. I only wish there were more photos of her in full color, even though the black & white photos of her were equally as moving.
As someone who is going through a personal growth spurt, and is learning that there are parts of her self-esteem that need to be worked on, seeing this exhibit really made me think about womanhood and how life has so many turns and so many twists, but if you allow yourself forgiveness and patience you can really leave a powerful legacy behind for others to learn from.
The exhibit runs through May 12, 2019 and because you absolutely need to see it,
Our friends at the Brooklyn Museum have given us a pair of tickets to giveaway!
Just sign up for our newsletter below!
We’ll be announcing the winner on Friday March 29th.
