Who needs feet when we've got wings to fly (Frida Kahlo Museum)

"Pies para que los quiero si tengo alas pa' volar."
("Who needs feet when we've got wings to fly.")
- Frida Kahlo

If you are into art at all, chances are, you've heard of the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. Even if you are not into art, you might have heard of her anyway or at least seen some of her iconic images. You might or might not have also heard about her husband, muralist and cubist painter, Diego Rivera. If you've watched the movie "Frida" with Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina, you have an idea of their troublesome love story and of Frida's tragic, yet fascinating life. Here, in Mexico City, where the artists lived and worked, Frida is everywhere and imagery inspired by her self-portraits is almost living a life of its own, on bags, wallets, earrings, t-shirts, posters and greeting cards on bazaars all over the city. 

Here is what we find about the painter on Wikipedia:

Frida Kahlo de Rivera (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈfɾiða ˈkalo]; born Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón; July 6, 1907 – July 13, 1954) was a Mexican painter, who mostly painted self-portraits. Inspired by Mexican popular culture, she employed a naïve folk art style to explore questions of identity, postcolonialism, gender, class, and race in Mexican society. Her paintings often had strong autobiographical elements and mixed realism with fantasy. In addition to belonging to the post-revolutionary Mexicanidad movement, which sought to define a Mexican identity, Kahlo has been described as a surrealist or magical realist. Her work has been celebrated internationally as emblematic of Mexican national and indigenous traditions, and by feminists for what is seen as its uncompromising depiction of the female experience and form. (Read more here.)

Her life and art were defined by her illness (she was left disabled by polio as a child and then was seriously injured in a traffic accident at the age of eighteen; she spent many years of her life in heavy corsets and in bed, at times unable to walk or even move), which dictated her career, life choices and even her unique way of dressing. She was also deeply influenced by the politics of the Mexican Communist Party, as well as her relationship with her husband, with whom she shared a love for communism, as well as for Mexico. 

Frida's striking family home, La Casa Azul (The Blue House) in Coyoacan (then, a village on the outskirts of Mexico City, now one of the city's districts), where she lived most of her life, also with her husband, and where she eventually died, has been turned into a museum. I visited it a few weeks ago and was so impressed that I did not want to leave! No wonder La Casa Azul draws crowds of visitors each day and it is recommended to get your tickets in advance! If you are planning to visit, definitely buy the ticket online and come as early, as possible in the morning. Once there, I strongly recommend to get the audio guide, because it's worth it! (Ask about it in the cloakroom.) And don't bring any large bags or backpacks, because you will have to leave them in the cloakroom (not a big deal, at the end of the day). 

Got questions? Let me know, I'll do my bes to help!

Frida's father, Guillermo Kahlo

Frida's beloved puppet theatre

The very traditional Mexican kitchen, where Frida prepared all of Diego's favorite dishes

Frida's studio