3 Reasons Porque Yo Amo a Freida Kahlo

by Carolina M. Billings

Frida Kahlo, in my opinion, has become one of the ultimate icons for Powerful Women, her unique personality and multifaceted life in the deeply patriarchal culture that is Latin America then and now. She has become a standard-bearer for women’s inner strength, for courage in the face of adversity. Above all, she was a genuine woman who was faithful to her convictions.

To this day, Freida is considered the best artist Mexico has ever seen. Her paintings are still honoured at prestigious museums throughout the world. They have stood and continue to stand for Diversity and Self-Inclusion. Her art represents women in a way that impacts you forever. I have had the pleasure of seeing many of her original portraits. The majority of her works rest in the very house in which Freida was born and died. La Casa Azul, or The Blue House, serves as a museum for Freida and her paintings.

charismatic, and beautiful in a way that was unique to her. She was wildly interesting, and I can only imagine her as the queen for all who refuse to maintain the status quo.

3.The “F” in feminism ought to stand for “Freida.”

She defied the traditional art depiction of female beauty and painted raw and painful experiences that many women go through including miscarriage, sexuality, and the social position of women. Kahlo refused to be a victim of a broken body, mind or spirit. “I suffered two serious accidents in my life, one in which a bus threw me to the ground... The other accident is Diego,” Freida famously said.

The Mexican artist’s life wasn’t easy: Freida contracted polio as a child, had a near-fatal, life-changing accident as a teenager, married a renowned artist who had countless affairs, struggled with infertility, ailing health, and a lifetime of chronic pain. But Freida Kahlo found her salvation in the paintbrush and transformed her experiences into beautiful and emotionally charged art. She lived by her own rules, trusted her vision and, most of all, she trusted herself.

1.Freida did Freida Unapologetically. Freida was a woman ahead of her time, questioning gender roles and identity in an era when those weren’t even topics for discussion. She even showed up for her family photo dressed in a men’s suit. Her fashion, an eyecatching blend of European and traditional Mexican styles, put her on the cover of Vogue Magazine.

2. To me, Freida symbolizes strength in the face of adversity. She represents the embodiment that pain and hardship do not need to stop us; they can push us and make us think outside the box. Her work can influence us and make us better people/artists/creators. She was confident,