Artist As Outlaw: Frida

Traumatic experiences change the course of a person’s life. Daily routines and challenges can take on new levels of difficulty. It’s hard to function being in so much pain…it can be debilitating. And the effects of pain, both physical and mental, can impact a person’s ability to live a normal life.

Except that maybe we aren’t supposed to live a “normal” life. If something was to be considered normal, pain is that. Pain is inevitable. Our response to that pain is the strength or weakness we are given, to use as we will.

I know it may sound counterintuitive…the things that feel like weaknesses being a source of strength. That the parts of ourselves keeping us bound to our trauma would somehow also free us. But the beautifully broken among us possess the power to heal that brokeness, and become stronger through that process.

Frida knew about pain. Her life was scarred by it, both physically and emotionally.

As a young girl, Frida was bedridden for 9 months due to polio. Because of this her right leg and foot were underdeveloped and weak for the rest of her life, causing her to walk with a limp. Though she was physically impacted, Frida didn’t let it slow her down. After she recovered from Polio her father encouraged her to strengthen what was weak. Frida became involved in many sports to build her strength. She played soccer, went swimming, and even involved herself in wrestling, which was very unusual for a girl to do at that time.

But it wouldn’t be the first time Frida was known for doing things unusually. Frida would later go on to attend a preparatory school that only 34 other women attended. She didn’t let her gender stop her from speaking up about the things she was passionate about. Despite other people’s opinions, Frida was strong in her sense of self and her need to express it.

At the age of 18, Frida was involved in a terrible bus accident that left her body shattered and put her once again in bed, where she would remain for several months. During this time Frida began to express her physical and mental anguish through painting. Frida described her loneliness as fuel for her HeArtwork expressions…

“I paint myself because I am often alone and I am the subject I know best. ”

This type of artistic outlet would become her lifelong pursuit.

Frida healed and became active in the art culture of Mexico. She connected to many famous artists of the time, including Diego Rivera. Diego and Frida married, marking the beginning of their unconventional and tumultuous union. Diego became a big source of Frida’s pain. He had multiple affairs, including with Frida’s own sister. His constant infidelity prompted Frida to take a separate residence from Diego, though they remained married during that time.

Yet Frida had more pain to bear. This tumultuous time period was also marred by the miscarriage of her two children. Frida’s body was incredibly damaged from the bus incident, requiring many surgeries throughout her life. Tragically, this would prevent her from being able to carry children, and become the mother she longed to be.

These great sorrows became portraits of herself, and other paintings that she created to express the grief of her life. Through surreal imagery, Frida expelled the shadows of her soul a brushstroke at a time, turning those broken pieces of herself into a mosaic of art. The raw emotions of Frida’s HeArtwork resonated with many who saw it. She would become known for it throughout the world and for decades to come.

All of Frida’s heartache would have been enough for many to fall into despair and give up on going on. But Frida learned strength from an early age. Frida found a way to live authentically beyond the limitations of gender stereotypes, physical abilities, trauma, and heartbreak. Her story is one that reminds us of the reserves of strength we can access by alchemizing our pain and weaknesses. Through expressions of HeArtwork we can heal ourselves and find our strength…and potentially help others to do the same. I believe Frida was a healer through her art; I also believe that we all possess this capacity within the most painful parts of ourselves… for those that choose to meet that pain with their strength and no their weakness.

We can be beautifully broken. And we can choose to artfully mend.