STREAMING PROGRAM INFORMATION

• This program is part of our Smithsonian Associates Streaming series.
• Platform: Zoom
• Online registration is required.
• If you register multiple individuals, you will be asked to supply individual names and email addresses so they can receive a Zoom link email. Please note that if there is a change in program schedule or a cancellation, we will notify you via email, and it will be your responsibility to notify other registrants in your group.

“Fridamania” refers to the ever-growing fascination with the hallucinatory art and tumultuous life of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907–54). The child of a German Jewish father and a Catholic mestiza mother (part-Indigenous and part-European), Kahlo had hoped to become a doctor, but a terrible bus accident at age 18 left her near death.  She recovered, but despite numerous operations she spent the rest of her life in pain.

The paintings Kahlo made during her lengthy convalescence opened a new path. She was especially encouraged by the much older, internationally famous fellow Mexican painter Diego Rivera, with whom she fell in love. Their stormy life together and apart formed the basis for many of her pictures, as well as books, plays, and films about Kahlo.

Ironically, her very brief New York Times obituary identified her as “Frida Kahlo, wife of Diego Rivera,” later noting “She also was a painter.” Today, Kahlo is better known than Rivera as an artist, especially in the United States. Labeled a surrealist because of the fantastical, often nightmarish quality of her paintings, Kahlo always countered that she didn’t paint dreams: She painted her own reality. Despite her physical challenges, Kahlo remained politically active in Communist causes and was bold in challenging the social mores of the time.

Art historian Nancy G. Heller examines Kahlo’s short life—including the reasons for her love of wearing traditional Mexican clothing, accessories, and hairstyles—and her work. She looks beyond the famous self-portraits to also include landscapes, still-lifes, and other Kahlo subjects.

Heller is a specialist in the history of women artists and a professor at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

World Art History Certificate elective: Earn 1/2 credit*

Patron Information

• Once registered, patrons should receive an automatic email confirmation from CustomerService@SmithsonianAssociates.org.
• Separate Zoom link information will be emailed closer to the date of the program. If you do not receive your Zoom link information 24 hours prior to the start of the program, please email Customer Service for assistance.
• View Common FAQs about our Streaming Programs on Zoom.

*Enrolled participants in the World Art History Certificate Program receive 1/2 elective credit. Not yet enrolled? Learn about the program, its benefits, and how to register here.