In 1954 at the age of 47, Frida was suffering from a long list of ailments that continuously affected her day-to-day life. The bus accident that she was in many years before had left her with permanent disabilities with her spinal column and pelvis. Frida underwent many operations to try to repair her disabilities with no luck. Eventually, in the early 1950s, Frida could no longer support herself long enough to sit or stand for long periods of time. Due to medical complications, in 1953 she had a foot amputated. This left her unable to walk. For the last remainder of Frida’s days, she was left primarily bed ridden. A few days before her death, Frida had put the finishing touches on her painting, Viva La Vida, Watermelons. On the central watermelon, an inscription can be seen that reads Viva La Vida, which means “Long live life.” This can be seen as ironic commentary on her pain filled life, both physically and emotionally. As she was in her family home, Frida wrote in her diary, "I hope the exit is joyful — and I hope never to return.” Frida Kahlo died on July 13th, 1954 in her family home due to supposed pulmonary embolism, though many suspect she may have died from an overdose.

Docent Story

Frida Kahlo was born in the summer of 1907. From a very young age Frida had medical conflicts, the first of which was when she contracted polio which left her with an odd turning foot. Later, at the age of 18, Frida was involved in a wreck that left her with permanent complications for the rest of her life. Not only did she suffer physically, but she also suffered emotionally as well; much of that emotional suffering due to the affairs that both she and her husband had. Frida was a strong willed and fiery woman, which is so well portrayed in many of her self-portraits, including the painting I was assigned for this project called The Broken Column. In this painting, Frida depicts herself with a powerful presence. She is looking directly at the viewer. Though the painting radiates a powerful presence, some things in the painting may at first contradict that. The nails piercing her skin, the tears streaming from her eyes, the rigid corset holding her up, the broken column shown as her backbone, her breasts bare, and the landscape in the back filled with ravines. Despite all this, she stands strong in her self-portrait. These things depicted are not a show of weakness, they are a show of strength and the trauma she had dealt with in her life. The nails can be interpreted as her long-term medical issues continuously causing her pain, the tears her emotional suffering from the ups and downs of her marriage, the rigid corset being her passion for painting holding her up, the broken column being her injury from the wreck, her bare breasts representing the vulnerability in her paintings, and the creviced landscape being the past behind her. In the painting, she is strong, looking forward at the viewer and at the future. The self-portraits, especially The Broken Column, help the viewer to connect the events in her life to the painting. She painted her own truth, which reflects this quote from Frida, “I never paint dreams or nightmares. I paint my own reality.”

Work Citied

“Frida Kahlo Dies.” World History Project, https://worldhistoryproject.org/1954/7/13/frida-kahlo-dies.

“Frida Kahlo Timeline.” Frida Kahlo Timeline., https://www.fridakahlo.org/frida-kahlo-chronology.jsp.

“Frida Kahlo: 5 Facts You Might Not Know about Her Life.” TheCollector, 23 Feb. 2022, https://www.thecollector.com/5-facts-you-might-not-know-about-frida-kahlo/.

Frida Kahlo's Husband, Diego Rivera, https://www.kahlo.org/husband/.

“Frida Kahlo's Other Accident.” Lisa's History Room, 30 Apr. 2014, https://lisawallerrogers.com/2009/05/27/frida-kahlos-other-accident/.

“Frida Kahlo's Paintings.” 100 Famous Paintings by Frida Kahlo, https://www.fridakahlo.org/frida-kahlo-paintings.jsp.

Mcgregor, Lennon. “What Art Techniques Did Frida Kahlo Use?” R4 DN, 1 Mar. 2021, https://r4dn.com/what-art-techniques-did-frida-kahlo-use/#:~:text=What%2....

“Remember Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo.” Widewalls, https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/diego-rivera-frida-kahlo.

Svoboda, Elizabeth. “How a Devastating Bus Accident Changed Frida Kahlo's Life and Inspired Her Art.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 1 Mar. 2022, https://www.history.com/news/frida-kahlo-bus-accident-art.