Popejoy Hall buzzed with excitement Friday evening as the University of New Mexico Art Museum opened “Frida Kahlo: Her Photos,” an exhibit of the artist’s personal albums.
Roughly 1,300 people attended the event, making it “the biggest opening for the museum in many years, possibly ever,” according to UNM Art Museum Director Arif Khan.
To the dedicated observer, the story of Frida’s life can be puzzled together through the dark, surrealistic imagery of self-portraits she painted. It is these photographs, though, snapshots from the days of her life, that give a more accessible view into Frida’s world. What we find there is something equal parts ordinary, illustrious and painful.
Frida was often referred to as “Mrs. Rivera” because of her turbulent marriage to painter Diego Rivera: one full of affairs, a divorce, and a reunion. Through her work, though, she has gained notoriety in her own right.
Frida became dedicated to painting after a bus accident left her with major injuries, leaving her with chronic health issues that would land her back in the hospital many times throughout her life. Cathartically, she used painting as a way to express the boredom of her bedridden days and the anguish of chronic pain. These paintings bore it all: the depths of the human condition, fearlessly.
Frida was also a feminist well before the boom of second wave feminism in the 1960s. She defied conventional female roles by owning her bisexuality — one that led her to have affairs with men and women alike — and was outspoken about her Marxist political beliefs during a time when this was wildly unpopular.
It is perhaps this menagerie of her talents as an artist, her compelling strength in a pain-filled life and this courage to be entirely herself that has attracted people to Frida’s image for decades.
Khan referred to the 6,500 pictures discovered in a closet 50 years after Frida’s death as “A treasure trove of photographs.”
The collection included 241 photographs, ranging from a portrait of Frida’s first love, Alejandro Gomez Arias, to a photo signed lovingly by Edward Weston himself, to pictures of Frida lying in her hospital bed. All of this aimed to illustrate a balance of what her life might have been like.
Pablo Ortiz Monasterio, a prominent figure in Mexico’s contemporary photography world, curated the exhibit. He will be giving a lecture at UNM’s Art Museum on Oct. 4 to describe his process of curating the exhibit.
The exhibit began its tour in Mexico City in 2009 and has since been making its way around the globe. It piqued interest from the UNM Art Museum for multiple reasons.
“Here, at UNM, we have one of the top collections of photography in the country. Our studio photography program and our art history program are also internationally acknowledged. We have a natural connection based on the medium,” Khan said.
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Because of her ties to the artist community, her photography collection contains works from other notable photographers, such as Man Ray’s piece “Woman,” and various photographs by Tina Modotti.
This exhibit can also be seen as a cultural exchange, an eye into the South American cultures of the early 20th century.
Frida’s interest in indigenous culture can be seen through her paintings. The collection mirrored this by depicting various South American native customs. The photos depict Aztec ruins, dancing Guatemalan women and the Easter-time ritual of the Burning of Judas in Mexico.
Similar to how this body of photographs makes Frida Kahlo’s life accessible to its audience, Khan hopes that, through popular exhibits like this, the museum can interest individuals from all disciplines.
“People feel personally fascinated and intrigued by her,” he said. “There are not many artists that are as recognizable to the general public. We’re hoping to bring in new audiences to the UNM Art Museum. We want the art museum to feel like a place that’s for to all students, not just those who are art majors.”
As part of this effort, the UNM Art Museum is offering guided tours twice every Saturday with the museum’s Curator of Education and Public Programs Tracy Quinn. “Frida Kahlo: Her Photos” runs through Dec. 2.
Hannah Eisenberg is a culture reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be contacted at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
