Woman's Art Inc.

Aztec Imagery in Frida Kahlo's Paintings: Indigenity and Political Commitment

Author(s): Janice Helland
Source: Woman's Art Journal, Vol. 11, No. 2 (Autumn, 1990 - Winter, 1991), pp. 8-13
Published by: Woman's Art Inc.
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3690692
Accessed: 11-01-2016 23:13 UTC

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 P0WWT
AWWT
ridaKahlousedtheoften fromthisearlysimplifiedsociety
F traumatic and harrowing grew the complex structureof
iconography ofher Mexican
heritageto paint herselfand her AZTEC Aztecsociety.
AlfredoChavero,a 19th-centu-

IMAGERY IN
pain. Pain became an integral ry Mexican intellectual
and a lead-
partof Kahlo'slifeafter,at age 18, ing supporterof Aztec eminence,
a streetcaraccidentlefther par- was one of the firstto describeas
tiallyparalyzed. From then on she beautiful the awesome, fearful

underwenta series of operations
and, because of her severely
injuredpelvis,a numberof mis-
carriages and abortions.
FRIDA
goddessfigureCoatlicue(Fig. 1),
now on view in the Museo
Nacional de Antropologia in
Her MexicoCity. This serpent-skirted

KAHLO'S
physicaldisability never inhibited goddess,adornedwitha necklace
Kahlo'sflairfortheatricsand this, of skulls that rests upon her
combined with a tempestuous breastsand enhancesher severed

PAINTINGS
relationship withher philandering neck,is a favoredmotifin Kahlo's
husband, mural painter Diego work. Although she seldomrepre-
Rivera, established her as a tragi- sents the deity in her complete
cally romantic and exotic figure. sculpted form, she nevertheless
As a result, Kahlo's works have repeatedly refersto the severed
been exhaustively neckand skullnecklace. In addi-
psychoanalyzed
and therebywhitewashedof their and Political
Indigenity tion to Coatlicue imagery,Kahlo
and
bloody,brutal, overtly political
content. Kahlo's personal pain
Commitment also uses imagesof the heartand
the skeletonin her paintings.All
should not eclipse her commit- three are importantsymbolsin
mentto Mexico and the Mexican Aztec art as well as in Kahlo's
By Janice Helland Mexicanidad.
people. As she soughther own
roots,she also voiced concernfor Kahlo's particular form of
her countryas it struggledforan Mexicanidad,a romanticnational-
independent cultural identity. Her life and even her death ism that focused upon traditional art and artifacts unitingall
werepolitical. indigenistas regardless of theirpolitical stances,revered Aztec
Kahlodied elevendaysafterparticipating in a publicprotest traditions above and beyondthoseof otherpre-Spanishnative
opposed to Americanintervention in Guatemala. On July14, cultures. She expressedher deeplyfeltnationalism in artby
1954, her body lay in state in the magnificentfoyer of the the
favoring representation of the powerful and authoritarian
Belles Artesin MexicoCity. Much to the chagrinof Mexican pre-Columbiansocietythathad united a large area of the
officials,her coffinwas draped witha large flagbearingthe Middle Americasthroughforceand conquest. This emphasis
Soviethammerand sicklesuperimposed upon a star. With her on the Aztec,ratherthan Mayan,Toltec,or otherindigenous
love of the unconventionaland her talentforblack humor, cultures,correspondsto her politicaldemand fora unified,
Kahlo,in all likelihood, wouldhave enjoyedtheuproarcaused nationalistic, and independentMexico. Unlikeher husband,
by this spectacle.' she disapprovedof Trotsky's internationalism. She was drawn,
Kahlo, like many other educated youngpeople during the rather,to Stalin'snationalism, which she probablyinterpreted
tumultuous era betweenthewars,joinedtheCommunistParty as a unifying forcewithinhis own country.Her anti-material-
in the 1920s. In the earlypartof the century, the intellectual ismhad a distinctly anti-U.S.focus.
atmosphere in Mexico was charged with cosmopolitan Her repeated use ofoftenbloodyAztecimagery is an intrin-
European ideologies,mostprominently Marxismtempered sic partof her socialand politicalbeliefsand derivesmuchof
withMexicannationalism.Renewedinterestin Mexico'scul- itspowerfromthe depthof herconvictions.Thus,the skele-
ture and historybegan in the 19thcentury, and by the early tons,hearts,and Coatlicue,imagesrelatingto theemanationof
20th century,Mexicanindigenistatendenciesrangedfroma lightfromdarknessand life fromdeath, speak not onlyto
violentlyanti-Spanish idealization of Aztec Mexico to a more Kahlo'spersonalstruggleforhealthand lifebut to a nation's
rationalinterestin the "Indianquestion"as the keyto a truly struggle. It is thisintenseinterestin her homelandthatis
Mexicanculture.2 behindhertransformation intoa mythological or cultfigureby
Mexicannationalism, withitsanti-Spanish anti-imperialism, the Mexican people.4
identifiedthe Aztecs as the last independent rulersof an For a time,Frida Kahlowas also the "darling"of New York
indigenouspoliticalunit. However,by the early20thcentury, and Paris art circles. She was courted by the "pope of
the UnitedStatesbegan to replaceSpain as the intrusive for- Surrealism,"AndreBreton,who, in 1938 describedher as a
eign power. The threatbecame particularlyevidentto the "ribbonarounda bomb"in hisglowingbrochureforherexhibi-
Mexican left when the United States interfered in internal tionin New Yorkat theJulienLevyGallery."However,Kahlo
politicalstruggles between capital and labor. The most roman- never sawherselfas a Surrealist and becamethoroughly disillu-
ticoftheanti-imperialists continuedto idealizetheself-control sionedwiththemovement and withBretonaftera tripto Paris
and governingpower of the Aztecswho, accordingto some earlyin 1939. By the mid-1940s,Kahlowas rarelymentioned
prominentlate-19th-century intellectuals,could trace their northofthe borderor in Europe,althoughherpopularity and
rootsto an earlycivilization based upon a combination ofcom- influenceremainedundiminished in Mexico.
munismand laborleadingto fraternity and virtue."Allegedly, Only since the late 1970s, withthe increasedinterestin

O
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womenartistsand feminist scholarship, has Kahlo reemerged likemanyofthepre-classicsculpturesfoundnearMonteAlban
as an international figure.Because ofherlargenumberofself- in centralMexico(datingfromc. 500 B.C.). The squattingfig-
portraits,manyofwhichrevealherphysicaland psychicpains, ure to the rightis a pastiche of the manysquattingfigures
her art is often subjected to a psychoanalyticalapproach. foundin Aztec sculpture,forexample,the Seated Old God
Harrisand Nochlinwritethat"she turnedto herselfand her With the Buccal Mask (c. 1200-1521 A.D.; Philadelphia
own peculiarlyfeminineobsessionsand dilemmasforsubject Museum of Art),or the kneelingdeath goddesseswho wear
matter."'Herrerabelievesthat"Kahlo has become something skullsor handtrophynecklaces(c. 1300 A.D.; Museo Nacional
of a heroine to U.S. feministswho admire the devastating de Antropologia, MexicoCity). The templein the upperleft
frankness withwhichshe recordedspecifically femaleexperi- resemblesthe Main Temple Area at Tenochtitlan depictedin
ences-birth,miscarriage, unhappinessin love."-, one of Fray Bernadinode Sahugun's16th-century codices or
Certainly, as French theorists H6l`ne Cixous and Luce the drawing of Montezuma's Palace in the Codex Mendoza (c.
Irigaray have suggested, women must "speak"and "write"their 1541-42; Bodleian Library, Oxford).'2 It is locatedimmediately
own experiences," but the "speaking"mustalso be relatedto beneaththe blood-drenchedmouthof the sun and the darker
thecontext.Kahlo's"speaking"herselfencompassesherpoliti- crescentmoon. The dominating images,the temple,the sun,
cal selfand her love forher country.For example,in a 1929 and the moon-all referring to theAztecpracticeof ritualsac-
self-portrait,"TimeFlies,"'Kahlowearsa necklaceofjadeiteor rifice-are deliberatelyrenderedin a "primitive"or "naive
greenstone, the favorite stoneof Aztecsculptors.She painted folkloric similarto thatfoundon retablos,thetradition-
style,"'3
twoAztecsymbolson thisnecklace: a circleand crosssuper- al Mexicanpaintingsof miraclescollectedby Kahlo. The pre-
imposedon two crossedbands. The circleand cross on the Columbianside ofthepaintinghas a rich,lushborderofvege-
necklace represents theAztecglyph"movement" or "settingin tationdeeplyrootedin the darkearth. In contrastto this,the
motion"(a beginning)."'However,the crossedbandsare asso- industrialized United States(FORD is clearlyprintedon the
ciated with the Aztec god of death (or sacrifice), smokestacks)is representedby high,narrowbuildingsrooted
Michlantecuhtli, often found on Death Stone boxes." in the earthwithelectriccords thatgrowlightbulbs. The
Considering Kahlo's interest in Mexico, emphasisupon the robotson the rightare balanced on the Mexicanside witha
Aztec, and fascinationwith the skullthatrelatesto the skullsthat
life-death cycle,it is notsurprising oftenlinedthe stonewallsofAztec
thatthe workcombinestwo sym- temples, a life-sprouting-from-
bols-the "settingin motion"or death metaphor. The painting
beginningwith death and sacri- effectively contrasts Kahlo's
fice-into one. Mexico with Western industrial
In additionto evocationsofpast civilization.Kahloherselfstandsin
cultures,Kahlo refersto the pres- the middle, holdingthe Mexican
ent and modernity in the portrait. flagand wearinga Coatlicue-like
Visible throughthe open window necklacewithbones. For her,life
directlyabove her head is an air- and deathare as intimately related
plane; to her left a clock restsupon to the earth and the cosmos as they
a stackof books. Combinationsof were to her pre-Columbianances-
the modern with the traditional tors. The artist's temple,meantfor
occuragainin TheyAskfor Planes sacrifice, and the sun, dripping
and OnlyGet StrawWings(1938). withsacrificedblood, are included
A traditionallydressed Mexican withoutcomment:a concretevisu-
woman is held up by an unseen al example of Kahlo's idealization
force that has attached puppet oftheAztecpast.
strings to her straw wings. She is Another painting from her
held fastto the groundby spiked Americansojourn,My DressHangs
pegs and rope, but in her hands Here (1933; Fig. 3), scourgesthe
she holds a model airplane. The UnitedStateswithpicturesofa toi-
paintingmaysuggest moderniza- let, a telephone,a sportstrophy, a
tion for Mexico, but not at the dollar sign wrapped around the
expense of cultural identity. crossofa church,thestepsofa fed-
Indeed, modernityand cultural eralbuildingdepictedas a financial
nationalismoftenclash in Kahlo's graph,and Mae Westas Hollywood
world. fantasy. The incorporatedpho-
For example,in Self-Portrait on tographshighlighting the plightof
the Border BetweenMexico and the Depression-eraunemployedin
the UnitedStates (1932; Fig. 2), the lowerpartof the canvasdepict
Kahlostandson theborderbetween the contrastbetween wealth and
the highlyindustrialized, robotlike povertyin Americansociety. In
United States and agricultural, the midstof moraldecay,corrup-
preindustrial Mexico. The sculp- tion,poverty, and suffering, Kahlo
tureon the Mexicanside is typical- places a pristine image: the
ly pre-Columbian. In fact, the Fig. 1. Coatlicue,stone, late postclassic. Mexican National Tehuana dress. This traditional
standingpiece at the lower left is Museum of Mexico
Anthropology, City. costumeof Zapotec women from
WOMAN'S ARTJOURNAL FALL1990 / WINTER1991

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 paintingis called The Love Embrace of
the Universe. Or, because of the Earth
Goddess's wounded chest and Kahlo's
slashed neck, the "love embrace" could
mean death. The heartis alluded to by
the dropsof blood on the breastsof both
the goddessand theTehuana-cladKahlo.
Aztec art oftenrepresentsthe "heart"or
lifecenteras dropsof (or spurting)blood.
The Aztecheart,accordingto Laurette
Sjourn., "is theplace ofunionwherethe
luminousconsciousnessis made."'6 She
discusses the spiritual associations
betweenthe searchinto one's heartwith
its accompanying pain and the iconogra-
phy of the wounded or bleedingheartin
Aztec imagery.This woundedheartwith
dropsofblood,whichrecursso frequent-
lyin Aztecart,is shownmostdramatically
in The Two Fridas (1939). One Frida
wears a Tehuanadress,the othera white
lace European-style dress. The two
women are unitedby hands and hearts.
Like a cord,an arteryreaches fromone
Fig.2. FridaKahlo,SelfPortrait on theBorderBetweenMexicoand theUnitedStates(1932),
heart to the other,closelyjoiningthe two
oil on metal,31 x 35 cm.ManuelReyero,New York. Photo:Christie's.
cultures. The "luminousconsciousness"
theIsthmusofTehuantepecis one ofthefewrecurring indige- emanatesfromand unitesbothfigures.AlthoughKahlo'sfre-
nous images in Kahlo's work that is not Aztec. Because quentand explicituse of theheartmayalso relateto heremo-
Zapotec womenrepresentan ideal of freedomand economic tionaland physicalsuffering, theindigenousculturalsourcesof
independence,the image of theirdressprobablyappealed to thissymbolcannotbe overlooked.
Kahlo.'4 However,the referenceto freedomand libertyis On the lowerleftin Memory,a larger-than-life heartis set
combinedwithAztecimageryin at leastfourof Kahlo'sworks, upon the earth,its pulsingblood runningintothe ocean. In
therebyunitingthe two sourcesintoone statementof cultural the centerof the paintingstandsa handlessKahlo in contem-
nationalism dominatedby theAztec. This use of the Tehuana porarydress,heartpiercedby a lance. To her right,holding
dresswithAztec symbolsoccursin Memory(1937; see front herwithone hand,is an emptyTehuanadress(the same dress
cover), Remembranceof an Open Wound (1938), The Two as in My Dress Hangs Here); to her leftan empty,one-armed
Fridas (1939), and The Love Embrace of the Universe,the dress,the simple,everydaygarmentwornby the poor. Kahlo
Earth(Mexico),Diego,Me and SefiorXolotl(1949). wears the Tehuana dress again in Remembranceof an Open
In The Love Embraceof the Universe,the Earth (Mexico), Wound (1938). Here the artistliftsher skirtto displayan
Diego, Me and Senor Xolotl,Tehuana-robedKahlo holds an open wound on her leg, the resultof one of her numerous
infantlikeRiveraon herlap and,in turn,bothare encompassed operations,but thereis also symbolicreferenceto Aztec cul-
by a large,protectiveEarthGoddess sproutingMexicancacti ture. Lyingon her thighnear the wound are spikyplants,
fromher earth-body.SefiorXolotlis the smalldog-Kahlo's whichprobablyreferto the use of thornsforself-mutilation
pet-curled up on the large arm of the darkside of the god- perpetratedby Aztec priests.'7 Moreover,she has entwined
dess. The inclusionof a dog withsuch a name in a pictureso her head and the upper partof her bodywithgrowingroots,
obviouslyabout lifeand death (the largegoddessis wounded once again makingthe tie betweenlifeand death. She play-
butalso sproutsnewlifefromherbody)mustbe considereda fullytoldfriendsthattherighthandbeneathher skirtnearher
play both upon the name and the animal. SefiorXolotlcould genitalsindicatesthatshe is masturbating.'Pasztoryexplains:
representthe dog of the nine-layeredMictlan, the Aztec "The two basic metaphors for transformationin ancient
underworld;the historicchieftanof the early Chichimec, Mesoamerica were sexualityand death, because both were
Xolotl, considered the progenitor of the Aztecs;or the nahual, seen to resultin the creationof life."'9Nowhere in Kahlo's
or alter-ego,of one of the great gods in Aztec mythology, ouevre is this attitude more stronglyexpressed than in
Quetzalcoatl. Xolotl, in this sense, would be Venus, the Remembrance ofan Open Wound,and nowhereelse can such
eveningstar,twinto Quetzalcoatl,the morningstar. Perhaps a strongstatementbe foundforher personal identification
even more appropriateconsideringthe dualitycommon to with her cultural traditions. Within her own body, she
Aztec thought,the dog mightrepresentboth the warrior exploresall thedeath-lifetraditions ofherpast. And although
Xolotl,and the alter-egoof Quetzalcoatl,also named Xolotl.'5 she wears a Zapotec dress in all fourpaintingsmentioned
Xolotlthe hero maybe conqueringor protective:Kahlo holds above, it is the brutal,powerfulforceof the Aztec imagery
the oversizedinfantlike Riverain herarms. Xolotlthe nahual that attractsand repels the viewerand creates strong,com-
may be Venus, the goddess of love in Western tradition: the pellingworks.
0

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 he skeleton,anothersymbolin Aztec art,is also ubiqui- understanding theiruse in Kahlo'spainting.An accuraterep-
tous in Kahlo'spaintings.In Four Inhabitantsof Mexico resentationof the goddess appears in the top leftcornerof
(1938), Kahlo's"fourinhabitants"-achild,a Nayarit(western Moses (Nuclear Sun) (1945). PasztorywritesthatCoatlicue
Mexico)idol withbrokenfeet,a skeleton,and a largeMexican "embodiesthedualityof Mexicanconsciousness....Atthevery
manwrappedwithcordsand dynamite-arein the immediate centerof the figureis a contrastof quintessentialopposites:
foreground.A small strawhorsemanis in the midgroundof breastsseen behinda skull,thetwoimagesoflifeand death."''26
the farrightand,in thebackground, verynearto thebuildings Kahlo demonstratesthese "quintessentialopposites" much
along the horizonline, are seven tiny,barelyvisiblefigures. more dramatically thandoes the originalsculpturewhen she
The settingis a square in Coyoacan,Kahlo'sbirthplace,which paintsthe death skullimmediately beneathpalpablebreasts.
is now partof MexicoCity.2"The skeletonprobablyrelatesto Coatlicue as symbolis significant in a numberof Kahlo's
Mexicanholiday,the Day of the Dead. In fact,
the traditional In
self-portraits. Self-PortraitDedicated to SigmundFirestone
Kahlo indicatedthatthe skeletonsignifies"death: verygay,a (1940) and Self-Portrait WithBraid (1941), the traditionally
joke."2' clad Kahlo wears Coatlicue'sskullnecklace. In Self-Portrait
In The WoundedTable(1940), a Tehuana-cladKahlo shares WithThornNecklaceand Hummingbird (1940; Fig. 4), Kahlo's
a longtablewiththe cord-and dynamite-wrapped male figure thornnecklacedrawsblood fromher neck. Aztecpriestsper-
and the skeletonof Four Inhabitants. Her long darkhair is formedself-mutilation withagave thornsand stingray spines,
liftedup and drapedoverthe skeleton'sarm,tyingthetwofig- and Coatlicue'sneck also bleeds. The dead hummingbird is
ures together. Seated between Kahlo and the skeletonis a sacredto thechiefgod ofTenochtitlan, Huitzilopichtli,thegod
smallNayaritsculpture.The longarmofthesculptureextends ofthesunand ofwar. It also represents thesoul or spiritofthe
towardKahloand,nearhershoulder,mergeswithhers. Blood stone. In Self-
warriorwho died in battleor on the sacrificial
oozes fromwoundsin the table,the man'sfeet,and the skele- PortraitDedicated to Dr. Eloesser (1940), Kahlo coversher
ton." It pools nearthehem oftheTehuanadressand splatters head withflowers,and a necklaceof thornsagaindrawsblood
ontothe skirt.Blood is neverfarremovedfromtheheart,and fromher neck. She also wears a small hand as an earring.
in thisparticularworkthe skeletonis touchedby the blood- Boththe Coatlicueand the kneelingdeathgoddesssculptures
heartlinkingtheskeletaldeathfigurewiththeheart-life. wear handsas trophiesaroundtheirnecks. The drawingSelf-
The life-skeletonrelationshipis most obvious in Luther PortraitDedicatedto MarteR. Gomez (1946) showsherwear-
Burbank (1931). Here the skeletonlies embedded in the ing a hand earringand, althoughher neckis not pierced,it is
earth;rootsgrowfromthe skeletonand become a treewhich, coveredwithan intricately webbednecklacethatzigzagstightly
in turn,becomes horticulturist Luther Burbank. From the aroundher neck. The top of the necklacelookspreciselylike
rootsofdeath,theskeleton,springsthelife-affirmingtree." In the zigzag lines in Aztec sculpturethat representa severed
The Dream (1940; inside frontcover) the skeletonrestsatop head or limb. This typeofline,representing the fattylayerof
the canopyof a bed thatholds a reclining
Kahloentwinedbya livingplant. The skele-
ton here is directlyrelated to Kahlo. It
sleeps above her and, as Herrerasuggests,
maybe an indicationof her own dream of
death.24However,it also speaksof life;the
plantgrowsaroundKahlo'ssleepingbodyin
much the same way thatit twinedaround
LutherBurbank. In addition,the skeleton
holdsa bouquetof flowers.In Roots(1943)
Kahlo replacesthesupineskeletonsprouting
Luther Burbank'stree withher own body,
fromwhichgrowsa lush,richgreenfoliage
veinedwithredblood.
An outstanding exampleof the skeleton
in Aztec art is the standing greenstone
SkeletalFigure(Xolotl)(Wurttembergisches
Landesmuseum,Stuttgart),which has the
eagle and the sun disc carved on its back.
Xolotlis Quetzalcoatl's"twin,"the evening
star. The passingawayof the eveningstar
allows the morningstarto herald the day.
The skeletonis not death;it speaksof life.5
Skeletalgoddesses,usuallycarvedin green-
stone, are frequentlyfound among Aztec
artifacts. The skull,too, is oftenused to
adorn sculptures,forexample,Coatlicueor
thekneelingdeathgoddesses.
Kahlo'simagesof the skeletalfigureand
death can be understoodonlyin relationto
their iconography in Aztec work. The Fig. 3. Frida Kahlo, My Dress Hangs Here (1933), oil and collage on masonite, 46 x 50 cm.
Coatlicue sculpture provides a clue to Dr. Leo Eloesser Estate. CourtesyHerbertHoover Gallery.

WOMAN'S ARTJOURNAL FALL1990 / WINTER1991

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 politicaland cultural.She paintedherself,she paintedMexico,
and, as is commonamongmanyrealists,she paintedin sucha
wayas to be understoodby the people. Kahlo knewwhatshe
wantedherartto be:

Somecriticshave triedto classifyme as a Surrealist;but I do

notconsidermyself a Surrealist....I detestSurrealism.To meit
seemsa manifestation of bourgeoisart. A deviationfromthe
trueart thatthepeoplehopeforfromtheartist....I wishto be
worthy, withmypaintings, ofthepeopleto whomI belongand
to theideas whichstrengthenme.:"

It is probablyunfair,even speculatively,
to associateKahlo
withthe politicalauthoritarianism and artisticdidacticismof
Stalinism.Far removedfromthe realitiesof SocialistRealism,
forher,as formanyradicalMexicannationalists, Stalinrepre-
sentedanti-capitalism and anti-Americanism as wellas planned
economicdevelopmentin a nationalsetting.Stalin'sattraction
lay in the positiveaspects of a nationalpush forgrowthand
development,supposedly under the auspices of Marxism.
Certainly, thedarkside ofherAztecsymbolsand herindividu-
alisticimagerywouldhave offendedanyStalinistculturalcom-
missar. The idea of developingsocialismwithinone country
mayhave had a romanticappeal similarto thatfoundin the
unifiedrealmoftheAztecs. Of course,Kahlowas notpainting
fora defacto socialistgovernment but fromher own idealism.
She was a politicalradicaland passionatenationalist,
whoseart
was inspiredas muchby her publicbeliefsas by her personal
sufferings. As such,she shouldbe seen notas a Surrealist,nor
as a memberof anyotherWesternmodernistmovement, nor
exclusively as painterof the femaleexperience,but as a com-
Fig. 4. Frida Kohlo, Self-PortraitWithThornNecklace and
Hummingbird(1940), oil on wood, 63 x 49 cm. mittedThirdWorldculturalnationalist.e
Universityof Texas, Austin.
NOTES
subcutaneoustissue,is mostclearlyseen on the recentlyexca- A briefversionofthispaperwaspresented
at theUniversities
Art
vatedCoyolxauhqui(Moon Goddess) reliefnow in the Museo Associationof Canadain Ottawa,November1985. In addition to faculty
Nacional de Antropologia, Mexico City. AlthoughKahlo did members in theDepartment ofHistory in Artat theUniversity ofVictoria
not see this stone,she would have been familiarwithother whogenerously offeredtheirtimeandassistance duringthepreparation of
examples,and a close lookat herrepresentation
ofCoatlicuein thispaper,I thankS. L. Cline,University of California,SantaBarbara;
Moses revealssimilarzigzaglines. RalphCroizier,University ofVictoria; and Reesa Greenberg, Concordia
Montreal,
University, fortheircritical
comments and suggestions.
he psychologicalreductionismthatequates the bloody, 1. HaydenHerreraprovidesa vividdescription of Kahlo'sdeathand
brutal imageryin Kahlo's workwith a desire to "paint funeral inFrida: A Biography ofFridaKahlo(NewYork:Harper& Row,
away"her accident,suffering, and pain does littlejustice to 1983),429-40.Bertrand Wolfe,inTheFabulousLifeofDiegoRivera(New
herwork. It reducesan important of
group paintings done by York: Stein and Day, 1963),402-404,pointsoutthatitwas in Coyoacan,
a deeplyintellectualand sociallycommittedartistto simplya Kahlo'sbirth-and deathplace, thatthelastAztecruler,Cuauhtmeoc, was
visualcryof personalangst. But thiswas not Kahlo'sinten- tortured bythe Spanish. An altogether appropriate place,fromKahlo's
tion. Since she grew up afterthe Mexican revolutionand pointofview,to die.Wolfe,a friend to bothKahloand Rivera,claimsthat
reached maturitywhen indigeneityand Mexicanidad were Kahlowouldhave"laughedatthespectacle ofherfuneral."
strongforcesin her country, we shouldexpectto finddirect 2. Forfurther discussionoftheseideas,see BenjaminKeen,TheAztec
referencesto romanticnationalism in herwork. Andsinceshe in Western Thought (New Brunswick: RutgersUniversity,1971),463-508.
was a politicalperson,we should expect to findher politics See JeanFranco,TheModernCultureofLatinAmerica:Societyand the
reflectedin herart. Artist(Harmondsworth, Eng.: Penguin,1970)foran analysis of Mexican
Because Rivera supported the internationalistTrotsky, cultureandintellectual history.
Kahlo agreedto befriendthe exileand his entourage,but she 3. See Keen, TheAztec,424-32,fora synopsisof AlfredoChavero,
neverrenouncedStalin."2In fact,she died withan unfinished Historiaantiguay de la conquista(Mexico,1886). Keenprovides a transla-
portraitof Stalinon her easel. Framed above her bed were tionof Chavero'scomments about 509-10.
Coatlicue,
picturesof Marx,Engels,Lenin,Stalin,and Mao. In Russian 4. EmmanuelPernoud,"Uneautobiographie mystique:la peinture de
parlance,perhapsPartinostwould not have appealed to her, Frida Kahlo,"Gazettedes Beaux-Arts(No. 6, 1983), 43-48,discusses
but Narodnostwould have been preferableto bourgeoiscos- Kahlo's"cultification." He also drawsenlightening parallelsbetween
mopolitanism." Kahlo's 1940-50,
self-portraits, and the Soeurs Couronees, portraitsof
The intenseinterestin herhomelandand heruse ofindige- RomanCatholicnunscommonin Mexicoduringthe 18thand 19thcen-
nous Aztec art forthemesand symbolsmakeher art at once turies. Most workon Kahlo, includingRaquel Tibol's Frida Kahlo:

0
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Cronica,Testimonios y Aproximaciones (Mexico City: Edicionesde thewomenandtheirlifestyles. Breslow, in"CryofJoy," appropriatelysug-
CulturaPopular,1977),suggestsrelationships betweenKahlo'simagery geststhatKahlo'sTehuanadressrepresents theZapotec,the"unconquered"
and MexicanCatholicimagery.Although thesesymbols are important in people.
Kahlo'swork(she said thatCatholicimagery in herworkwas "partof a 15. Thenahual,oftentheanimalwithwhichpeopleandgodsweremagi-
memory image,notforsymbolic reasons,"see Herrera,Frida,157),it is callylinkedor associated, hasbeendescribed as the"twin" orthealter-ego.
notmyintention toexplorethemhere. CharlotteMcGowanin, "The PhilosophicalDualism of the Aztecs,"
5. See AndreBreton,"FridaKahlode Rivera,"reprinted in Breton's Katunob(December1977),37-51,explores thisaspectofdualismfoundin
Surrealism andPainting (London:Macdonald, 1972). Fora discussion ofa themythology andlifeofAztecs.
"naturalaffinity" betweenSurrealism and pre-Columbian imagery, see 16. Sejourn6, Burning Water,119. In S journ6's highly romanticized dis-
NancyBreslow, "FridaKahlo: A CryofJoyand Pain,"Americas(March cussion, thecultofQuetzalcoatl istheapexofthespiritual sideoflifeduring
1980),36-37. Breslowis one ofthefewKahloscholars whowriteson her theeraimmediately preceding Aztecrule.Hersuggestion thatthecultcon-
indigeneity. tinued into Aztec times while Aztec society, as a whole, became brutaland
6. AnnSutherland Harrisand LindaNochlin,WomenArtists:1550- is an attempt
militaristic to rationalize and relativize thegruesomeness of
1950(NewYork:Knopf, 1976),59. sacrifice.
7. Herrera,Frida Kahlo (Museumof Contemporary Art,Chicago, 17. For further discussion ofthisphenomena, see FrayDiego Duran
1978), 4. For a more theoretical (andpolitical) discussionof Kahlo'swork, (trans. and ed. by Fernando Horcasitas and Doris Heyden),Bookofthe
see Laura Mulveyand PeterWollenin Frida Kahloand Tina Modotti Gods and Rites,and the AncientCalendar (Norman: University of
(London: Whitechapel ArtGallery, 1982). See also TerrySmith,"From Oklahoma,1971),82-84and 419-20,or MichaelCoe, Mexico(London:
the Margins:Modernity and theCase of FridaKahlo,"in Block(No. 8, ThamesandHudson,1984),160.
1983),11-23. 18. See Herrera, Frida,190-91.
8. See H6rlneCixous,"Castration or Decapitation?" Signs(Autumn 19. Pasztory, AztecArt,57.
1981),41-55,and "The Laughof the Medusa,"Signs(Summer1976), 20. Herrera identifies thesquareas oneinCoyoacan(Frida,17),andcon-
875-93; Luce Irigaray,This Sex WhichIs Not One (Ithaca: Cornell ductsa Freudiananalysisofthework. She also comparesthe"broken"
University, 1985). sculpture withKahlo's"brokenness." Atthesametime,shepointedoutthat
9. All the paintingsdiscussedin thisessayare illustrated in Helga eachoftheinhabitants ofthepainting wasmodeledafteran artifact owned
Prignitz-Poda, SalomonGrimberg, and AndreaKellenmann, FridaKahlo: by the Riveras.(16-17) On the otherhand,Mexicanarthistorian Ida
Das Gesamtwerk (Frankfurt am Main: Verlag Neue Kritik,
1988). Rodriguez-Prampolini, in "Remedios Varo and Frida Kahlo: Two Mexican
10. Reproductions ofAztecglyphs can be foundin LauretteSejourn6, Painters," Surrealisme peripherique (Montreal:University of Montreal,
Burning Water: and
Thought Religion in Ancient Mexico (New York: 1984) stresses Kahlo's realism.
Vanguard Press,1956). 21. Herrera, Frida,17.
11. Riveraowneda DeathStonebox(nowintheDiego RiveraMuseum 22. Herreraalsoviewsthispainting as a psychological statement ofgrief:
inCoyoacan)thathassymbols onitveryliketheoneon Kahlo'snecklace.A "Asa symbol ofdomesticity, thewoundedtablemuststandforFrida'sbro-
completedescription ofa Death Stoneboxcan be foundinArtofAztec kenmarriage." (Frida,280) Rivera's numerous extramarital andthe
affairs
Mexico: Treasures of Tenochtitlan (National Gallery of Art, Washington, divorce have been cited as the reason for much emotional turmoilin Kahlo's
1983),56-58. EstherPasztory, AztecArt(NewYork:Abrams, 1983),245- life,eventhoughshe herself had manyaffairs.Rivera's emotional stateat
46, statesthatsuchboxesmayhavehadvariousfunctions, suchas holding thetimehas notbeen explored, although Herrerawritesthathe was very
theheartofa ritualsacrifice, holding theashesofthearistocratic dead,or dependent uponKahlo.Theartists remarried in 1940.
holding thethorns usedforself-mutilation. 23. Thiskindofimagery is alsofoundintheworkofmanyMexicanartists
12. Illustrations originally done forFrayBernadinode Sahagunin his andwriters.See BarbaraBrodman, MexicanCultofDeathin Mythand
16th-century compilation of Mexican history and mythology, Codex Literature (Gainesville: University ofFlorida, 1976),fora discussion oflife-
Florentino, are frequently reproduced in books about Mexican history, from-death metaphors in Mexican literature.
whereKahlocouldhaveseenthem.Similarily, shewouldhavehadaccess 24. Herrera, Frida,281.
to excerpts fromtheworksofFrayDiego de Duran,another16th-century 25. As Pasztory statesinherdiscussion oftheskeletal goddessesinAztec
commentator on NewSpain. Art,"deathwas chaos,evil,and darkness overcoming theforcesoforder,
13. "Primitivism," ora "naivefolkloric" style,inKahlo'spaintings hasbeen good,andlight; yetitwasalsonecessary, forwithout itlifecouldnotcontin-
discussedbyHerreraand byMichaelNewman.In "NativeRoots: Frida ue."(220)
Kahlo'sArt,"Artscanada(October/November, 1979),Herrerawrotethat 26. Ibid.,158.
Kahlo'sprimitivism, her"naive,folkloric manner...camouflaged theawk- 27. In MyArt,MyLife(NewYork:Citadel,1960),Riveratellsus that
wardtechnique ofan untrained artist."
(25) Newman, on theotherhand, "FridadetestedTrotsky's politics but,desiring to pleaseme,"she methim
linksprimitivism withnationalism in herartand labelsit "indigenity." In and invited himto stayin Coyoacan.By 1940political differences existed
"TheRibbonAroundtheBomb,"ArtinAmerica(April1983),160-69,he betweenRiveraandTrotsky as well. (229-30)
convincingly suggeststhatKahlo'snaivestyleis deliberate andtheresultof 28. Narodnost refers to thelooselyorganized populistidealsgrowing out
her politicalcommitment.JohnBerger,in "The Primitiveand the oftheanarchistic socialism ofthe19th-century Narodniki. Partinost,"party
Professional," AboutLooking(New York: Pantheon, 1980),suggests that consciousness" or "partyspirit," impliestotaldedicationto a centralized
professional paintingremoveslivedexperiencefroma workof art. He leadership.See Jerry HoughandMerleFainsod,HowtheSovietUnionIs
writes:"Thewillofprimitives derivesfromfaithin theirownexperience Governed (Cambridge:Harvard, 1979),10-16and116.
anda profound scepticism aboutsociety as theyhavefoundit."(68) I sub- 29. In a 1952letter fromKahlotoAntonio Rodriguez, quotedinHerrera,
mitthatKahlo'sworkdemonstrates botha "faith inherownexperience" and Frida,263.
a profound scepticismaboutsociety."
14. See MiguelCovarrubias, MexicoSouth:TheIsthmus ofTehuantepec
(London: Cassell,1946),30, fora ratherromanticized description ofthe Janice Helland, Assistant Professor of VisualArtsat Memorial
Tehuanas,and JosephWhitecotton, The Zapotecs: Princes,Priests, and University of Newfoundland, has writtenon Glasgowdesigner
Peasants(Norman:University ofOklahoma, 1977),forinformation about FrancesMacdonaldandon LeonoraCarrington.

WOMAN'S ARTJOURNAL FALL1990 / WINTER1991

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