The Diary of Frida Kahlo
The Diary of Frida Kahlo
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Since her death 41 years ago, Frida Kahlo's diary has been withheld from the public view by a private trust. Now, The Diary of Frida Kahlo, hitherto seen by only a privileged few, is available in a full-color fascimile. The book includes an English translation of the original Spanish, an introduction by Carlos Fuentes, and commentary by Sarah M. Lowe, all of which help to navigate the life of this remarkable woman, artist in her own right and wife of artist Diego Rivera.
Frida Kahlo's diary is not the documentation of her everyday life, but a collection of prose poetry, letters, paintings, and sketches. Because its pages have been reproduced in a color facsimile, the reader is allowed to fully experience the changes in Kahlo's handwriting, the relationships between text and drawings, and the general aesthetic of the book. Fuentes's introduction places Kahlo and her art in the context of Mexico's history, its culture, and the Surrealist movement. Likewise, Sarah M. Lowe's insights help to illuminate the drawings and writing, but her comments are minimal, leaving most of the esoteric text to the interpretation of its reader.
Much of the journal refers to Kahlo's turbulent and passionate relationship with her husband, the artist Diego Rivera, and the decline of her health. Although we are already aware of these issues from her paintings, never have we been privy to works as self confident in their rendering or unconscious in their subject matter. Nevertheless, Kahlo's diary, which spans the last ten years of her life (1944-54) is not simply a succession of images recording her mental suffering or the deterioration of her body. It is here that her diary works to distinguish Kahlo's personality from her art. In drawings such as that of her dogs wrestling with a ball of string, we see Kahlo's playful side. And when she writes, "There is nothing more precious than laughter . . . tragedy is the most ridiculous thing 'man' has," we become aware of her sense of irony and humor.
In her diary, Kahlo refers often to the Communist movement and makes use of symbols from myriad cultures. In so doing, she attempts to expose the universe within her work, or, as she states, the "Diversity within Unity." Kahlo writes, "There is nothing absolute/Everything changes, everything/moves everything/revolves." She, like her use of symbols, is multidimensional, and herein lies the secret of her resilience. The Diary of Frida Kahlo contains some of the artist's most uninhibited works. It leaves a strong impression and is an inspiration for all.
Marie Schley is a freelance writer and costume desinger in Los Angeles.
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