Painting Frida Kahlo

ClZq3PIWkAAef9_Over the past few weeks I have been painting a female painter that has been my artistic inspiration for many years. Seeing the film biography, Frida, made me realise how much I wanted to be ‘an artist’ and have an exhibition of my own one day.

The thing with painting Frida Kahlo is- firstly lots of other people have already painted her as she is so colourful and iconic. But more significantly, the great painter herself painted many self portraits. Part of me questioned- have I the right to paint her after she already depicted herself in a away that she chose?

For me painting someone is almost like having a conversation with them. As you study their face and the expression in their eyes you do come to know them in a special way. What complicated the painting was that the actress Salma Hayek who played her in the film, looked so much like her- and many images of Frida on the internet are interspersed with the actress!

But I so wanted to paint her- so I did. I chose an image of Frida that spoke to me. There was also an element in the image that resembled my own mother when she was younger. They shared the way they combed their hair at the sides. (Apparently Indians were once in Mexico).

As I painted and got to know Frida, I also referred to her diary which is translated beautifully,  and found a documentary charting her affair with Deigo her husband. For a while I was in her world.

What could I bring to the world of portraits of her? Rather than emphasise the elaborate way she adorned her body I tried to concentrate on her. At one point I tried to leave out the necklace but decided maybe it was disrespectful as she loved her jewellery so much. Could I show the pain? The resilience? The love? Her frustration with the cards she had been dealt in this life?

From her diary I found a phrase which I added to the painting. I painted it in Spanish, copying her own handwriting as best I could. Translated it means ‘Why do I need feet when I have wings to fly.’ (This was when, after her many operations on her back, she now had to have her foot amputated due to gangrene). Adding this seemed to be that something different.

Portrait of Frida Kahlo

I may have over worked the painting- perhaps I just wanted to continue the conversation…but as I now look at the finished piece- did I capture her? At one level yes- but at the level I wanted- not so sure.  I am now starting a second portrait, a grittier one, let’s see how that one goes…

Frida

P.S. I forgot to mention: I finished at the time that Britain decided to leave the EU. Interestingly I found myself becoming more outspoken and wanting to take part in politics at a grass root level. There was a voice inside of me that said ‘you have to step and say your piece’- Frida had obviously sparked the revolutionary in me!

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