Frida Kahlo biography

Frida Kahlo

Early life

Frida Kahlo was a Mexican artist. Her full name was Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón. She was born in Coyoacán, near Mexico City, in 1907. Frida grew up in a bright blue house called La Casa Azul with her parents and sisters. When she was six years old she became ill with polio and her leg was permanently damaged.

Starting to paint

Frida spent a lot of her life in and out of hospitals. She had many health problems and she suffered a lot of pain. When she was eighteen, she was in a bus accident. She broke lots of bones and she spent many months recovering. It was at this time that Frida started to paint. Many of her paintings from this time are self-portraits that show her pain and suffering.

Married life and career

In 1929 Frida married Diego Rivera, a Mexican artist who was famous for painting huge murals on walls. Both artists continued their work and became successful at home and abroad. After they got married, Frida started to wear traditional Mexican clothes and became interested in Mexican folk art. This influenced her paintings, which are very bright and colourful, with an original style that is very personal to Frida. However, they continued to show the pain and sadness which she experienced during her life.

Death and legacy

Frida Kahlo died on 13 July 1954, after suffering more and more health problems. Her husband died three years later. Today Frida and Diego's home, La Casa Azul, is a very popular museum, dedicated to Frida's life and work. It displays paintings by Frida and Diego, as well as many objects from their life, to help tell the story of one of the most important artists in the twentieth century.