Article suitable for older students

Frida Kahlo

‘The Blue House’ of Frida and Diego

The famous Mexican painter Frida Kahlo was, like her husband the muralist Diego Rivera, strongly influenced by the strength and richness of Mexico’s pre-Columbian cultures (this is clearly visible in several of the paintings on display in recent exhibitions in London of Frida’s work). (Written/compiled by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)

In fact, Frida and Diego went so far as to build a model of an Aztec temple in the middle of the courtyard of their beautiful home (“The Blue House” in Coyoacán, Mexico City - now a museum). We took these pictures in 1983 (please let us know how much the place has changed!)

If you want to browse many of Frida’s ‘classics’ online, the most accessible website we’ve come across to date is a Greek one (!) - esoterica.com (link below). Takes a while to load the page as there are so many - large - images on it, but it’s worth it.

Look for the powerful influence of pre-Hispanic roots in paintings such as... The Love Embrace of the Universe, the Earth [Mexico], Me, and Señor Xolotl [the dog], 1949

... the image of Coatlicue (earth goddess) in Moses, 1945

... the pyramids of the sun and moon (complete with rabbit) from Teotihuacán in Portrait of Lucha Maria, 1942

... the ceramic ‘itzcuintli’ (Aztec dog) figure at the centre of her 1951 Still Life

... her treatment of the alter ego - so visible in the ubiquitous spider-monkey in her paintings, as well as in the humming-bird and deer figures - in much the same way as the pre-Hispanic ‘nahual’ companion figure (see our Aztefacts section).

Picture sources:-
• Top two photos by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore

Aztefacts - the ‘nahual’ or other self Tate Modern esoterica.gr Website of the Gehrke-Remund Art Museum in Baden-Baden

Comments (2)

Mariella Remund

6th Mar 2010

The most mysterious Frida Kahlo’s painting, “The Wounded Table”, disappeared in 1955, is now in exhibition, as a replica, in Germany, at the Kunstmuseum Gehrke-Remund. We have given a totally new interpretation of the painting going back to the pre-columbian roots of Frida Kahlo. The painting shows Frida Kahlo as part of a Nayarit couple, and Mictlancihuatl who plays with a strand of Frida’s hair. Photo available on request.

Mexicolore

Many thanks for this valuable information, Mariella. We would be delighted to include more details about this intriguing painting and of your museum...

Kunstmuseum Gehrke-Remund

24th May 2009

Über 100 Gemälde (lizenzierte Repliken: © Banco de México Diego Rivera & Frida Kahlo Museums Trust / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2008) – meisterlich gemalt - werden im Kunstmuseum Gehrke-Remund gezeigt.
Die Ausstellung erstreckt sich über rund 600 qm und ist in einer alten Emaillierfabrik in Baden-Baden untergebracht.
Neben den Gemälden, Kleider und Schmuck ist auch der Lebensmittelpunkt von Frida Kahlo, ihre Casa Azul (das Blaue Haus) zu erleben.
Frida Kahlo, schon zu Lebzeiten eine Legende. Malerin - Ehefrau von Diego Rivera - befreundet mit Picasso - Geliebte von Trotzki und Josephin Backer.
Sie hat 144 Bilder in ihrem kurzen Leben gemalt.

Mexicolore

Basically, this is a recommendation to visit/view the “Pain and Passion” permanent exhibition on Frida Kahlo in Baden Baden, Germany, where they have over 100 replicas of her paintings on display. Click on http://www.kunstmuseum-gehrke-remund.de/

‘The Blue House’ of Frida and Diego