This was my second viewing of the film Frida, because I had already seen the film and knew the narrative and plot I found that I was able to focus on the cinematic techniques and symbolism. I particularly noticed the strong use of color to illustrate Frida’s varying mood and emotions. The film begins with a shot of the Kahlo’s garden, the walls are painted a brilliant blue and the patio is filled with plants and colorful decorations. Throughout the film, the patio garden is a signifier of the tone and emotion of the film. When Frida’s mother dies the garden becomes dull and gray representing the pain and depression that the family is overcoming during the difficult time. This same dull, gray tone helps to illustrate moments of depression in Frida’s life when she is struggling through her relationship with Diego Riviera and the pain of her life long physical condition. Another example of color in the film is the butterflies, which Frida draws on her cast during her rehabilitation. The butterflies become brighter as Frida becomes stronger and her condition improves.
In Sherry Ortner’s article, “Is Female to Male as Nature is to Culture?” she discusses the fact that popular belief asserts that women can more strongly be identified with nature and on the contrary men can be identified with culture. “Women’s body is seen as closer to nature because of its functions, man’s philosophy frees him more completely to take up the projects of culture.” I think that this notion of women as nature and man as culture is strongly depicted in the film Frida. The dominance of the male figure comes into play because although females are the only sex able to reproduce, on the other hand without man’s contribution reproduction is not possible and therefore men have the upper hand. But, because generally in a women’s life her body goes through periods of menstruation and ultimately gestation and birth they do not have the same physical capabilities as mans’ to create artificial means to sustain our culture. This idea of the physically disabled woman is depicted in Frida as she is not only physically challenged by an accident she had when she was eighteen she also had a miscarriage that was difficult to endure both physically and mentally. In the artist world and historical canon of art Men have always been the dominant figure. Frida’s marriage and associations with Diego Riviera allowed her to become a part of the art world. Her relationship with a male figure (Riviera) helped her to become culturally involved because of his connections and ability to gain recognition. Andre Breton, one of the founders of Surrealist art also had a lot of influence over the publicity of Frida’s work, his strong male presence in the art world allowed him to arrange for one of the two shows that Frida had during her lifetime. Although it is clear that the male presence in Frida’s life allowed her to become a successful artist on the other hand I believe that Frida’s identification with nature is what enabled her to express herself artistically in an original manner. Her physical disabilities and miscarriage provided inspiration for some of her most famous and well-respected works of art. These renditions of natural human sensations spoke to the essence of human existence and hardship. It was Frida’s interaction with natural human experiences that allowed her to become one of the most revered female artists of the twentieth century.
“Never has a woman with a mustache been so revered- or so marketed- as Frida Kahlo. Like a female Che Guevara, she has become a cottage industry.” The film Frida, further illustrates the idea that women must have interesting and “tragic” lives beyond their art work in order for them to attract attention in the art world. As stated in Stephanie Mencimer’s article, “A female artist needs a compelling tragic biography to enter the male canon, yet her work is then trivialized because of that biography-something that rarely happens to men.” In the film, although many of Frida’s paintings are shown they are always filmed to further illustrate tragic moments in her life. It is clear that we as the viewer are meant to sympathize with Frida because of her physical and mental struggles throughout the film. Frida is seen as a victim, a victim of her own body and medical conditions and a victim in her relationship with Diego Riviera, a famous womanizer. It is her personal struggles and tragedy that allows her to standout among other female artists. Although, Frida’s life story is amazing and the obstacles she overcame noteworthy, one has to question whether or not an artist can and will ever be recognized outside of their biography? Personally, I believe that the artist’s life is often one of the more important aspects of their art as it provides the inspiration for the content and style their work. But, when we cannot appreciate the art without knowing this information it becomes an issue that artists both male and female will continue to struggle with.
In Sherry Ortner’s article, “Is Female to Male as Nature is to Culture?” she discusses the fact that popular belief asserts that women can more strongly be identified with nature and on the contrary men can be identified with culture. “Women’s body is seen as closer to nature because of its functions, man’s philosophy frees him more completely to take up the projects of culture.” I think that this notion of women as nature and man as culture is strongly depicted in the film Frida. The dominance of the male figure comes into play because although females are the only sex able to reproduce, on the other hand without man’s contribution reproduction is not possible and therefore men have the upper hand. But, because generally in a women’s life her body goes through periods of menstruation and ultimately gestation and birth they do not have the same physical capabilities as mans’ to create artificial means to sustain our culture. This idea of the physically disabled woman is depicted in Frida as she is not only physically challenged by an accident she had when she was eighteen she also had a miscarriage that was difficult to endure both physically and mentally. In the artist world and historical canon of art Men have always been the dominant figure. Frida’s marriage and associations with Diego Riviera allowed her to become a part of the art world. Her relationship with a male figure (Riviera) helped her to become culturally involved because of his connections and ability to gain recognition. Andre Breton, one of the founders of Surrealist art also had a lot of influence over the publicity of Frida’s work, his strong male presence in the art world allowed him to arrange for one of the two shows that Frida had during her lifetime. Although it is clear that the male presence in Frida’s life allowed her to become a successful artist on the other hand I believe that Frida’s identification with nature is what enabled her to express herself artistically in an original manner. Her physical disabilities and miscarriage provided inspiration for some of her most famous and well-respected works of art. These renditions of natural human sensations spoke to the essence of human existence and hardship. It was Frida’s interaction with natural human experiences that allowed her to become one of the most revered female artists of the twentieth century.
“Never has a woman with a mustache been so revered- or so marketed- as Frida Kahlo. Like a female Che Guevara, she has become a cottage industry.” The film Frida, further illustrates the idea that women must have interesting and “tragic” lives beyond their art work in order for them to attract attention in the art world. As stated in Stephanie Mencimer’s article, “A female artist needs a compelling tragic biography to enter the male canon, yet her work is then trivialized because of that biography-something that rarely happens to men.” In the film, although many of Frida’s paintings are shown they are always filmed to further illustrate tragic moments in her life. It is clear that we as the viewer are meant to sympathize with Frida because of her physical and mental struggles throughout the film. Frida is seen as a victim, a victim of her own body and medical conditions and a victim in her relationship with Diego Riviera, a famous womanizer. It is her personal struggles and tragedy that allows her to standout among other female artists. Although, Frida’s life story is amazing and the obstacles she overcame noteworthy, one has to question whether or not an artist can and will ever be recognized outside of their biography? Personally, I believe that the artist’s life is often one of the more important aspects of their art as it provides the inspiration for the content and style their work. But, when we cannot appreciate the art without knowing this information it becomes an issue that artists both male and female will continue to struggle with.
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