Self-Portrait with Necklace of Thorns

      “Self Portrait with Necklace of Thorns” 1940 

Frida Kahlo was born in Coyoacan, on July 6^th 1907- July 13^th 1954. Kahlo was one of four daughters born to a Hungarian-Jewish father and a mother with a Spanish and Mexican Indian descent.  She was best known for her incredible self-portraits. All her portraits are known for there “pain and passion” along with vibrant colors. Her work has sometimes been characterized as “Naïve art” or “Folk art”.  Frida, as a teenager suffered from problems that later turned into lifelong health problems. Kahlo said, “I paint myself because I am so often alone and because I am the subject I know best. “ 

What I really like about Kahlo’s portraits is that she expresses her emotions throughout each one.  She used painting as a form of self-therapy. In Kahlo’s portrait “The Broken Column”, she shows the viewers that once again she’s all alone. Unlike in most of her other portraits she has either some sort of animal or an interesting background filled with leaves and plants.  The reason why she has all these straps holding her up is because she feels she has no one to help her therefore she has to do it alone, once again. This portrait is representing all the awful physical problems she’s had in the past, like when she was 18 and was seriously injured in a bus accident, leaving her with a fractured spine, collarbone and ribs, a shattered pelvis and a shoulder and foot injury.

Overall, I really enjoy all her pieces and find them very interesting. Over her life time she’s created around 200 paintings and drawing relating to her life experiences. She’s done 55 self-portraits, that all tell interesting stories about her physical and emotional pain. When asked why she had painted so many self-portraits, she once again replied with “because I am so often alone…because I am the subject I know best.

By: Maddy

“The Broken Column” 1944