Bucket List Item #2 - FINALLY Frida … From 2 Different Countries!

Yes, this blog has been a little over 6 months in coming, but I have a reason. By the time this piece is published, I will have seen the Frida Kahlo exhibit at the Art Institute in Chicago…happy place on steroids! So, I decided to combine the 2 experiences. This blog might be a little more lengthy, but it will be filled with details, memories, and cool pictures, so thank you in advance for reading.

Again, some context is necessary. Ben (my spouse) bought for me for Christmas a Frida Kahlo-wrapped refrigerator for my art space! After I unwrapped it, he told me to open the freezer. In the freezer was a Delta Airlines voucher and the hours Casa Azul (Frida Kahlo’s Blue House in Mexico City) are open. SO, I left on Sunday, February 9 and was in Mexico City until Valentine’s Day (Friday, February 14), and I checked off the 2^nd of my 3-item bucket list when I visited her house on Wednesday, February 12! AND AND, the place I found to stay was pretty much literally across the street!! So, here’s the set-up. First trip to a foreign country other than Canada, a potential language barrier, AND checking off yet another bucket list item to my STUNNED WONDERFUL surprise.

Frida Fridge

I crash-coursed learning some Spanish the best I could and had some really important questions and phrases memorized by the time I arrived…including ordering another drink or another beer - HA! Thanks to the work I’d done and the English that most people I was around could speak, the majority of interactions went well. I had my Spanish-English dictionary with me, and Google Translate helped a bit, but there were just a couple of times that nothing much worked, and I ended up just pointing at something. But, again, those times thankfully were few.

I stayed at the Villa Alfonsina in Mexico City. It was a lovely place that I will absolutely stay at again when I return not only because of how close Caza Azul is to it, but it’s also within walking distance to fun shopping and easily in the top 3 dining and best food I’ve EVER had. Here are some pictures!

The day before I went to Casa Azul, I went to the home and studio that Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera shared for a time. The property is two separate buildings. The smaller blue one was Frida’s; the larger white one was Diego’s. The two structures are joined by a bridge. Each of them could even lock their side of the property. This property was Diego’s primary residence especially after Frida died in 1954, so the focus of most tour was more on Diego’s life and career. It was a fascinating insight into the relationship between these two powerful creatives. Here are pictures outside and inside.

The next day, Wednesday, February 12, was THE day - Casa Azul {please put hyperlink over ‘Casa Azul’ - https://www.museofridakahlo.org.mx/visit/?lang=en}! Frida Kahlo was born in this house on July 6, 1907 & died in this house on July 13, 1954. Her paintings obviously are all over the place, but you also get to see so many personal items, correspondence, photos, etc. I spent around 3 hours there. The tours are self-guided, so you can take your time. It is so bright and so colorful…sensory overload big time! Frida instructed that she be cremated when she died; her remains are in the frog ceramic container just off her main bedroom. Here are pictures galore.

Let’s fast forward about 6 months to the Frida Kahlo exhibit at the Art Institute. While Frida’s art was well-received in Paris, she could not WAIT to get out of there. Andre Breton dropped the ball in preparing a space for her exhibit, so Marcel Duchamp swooped in & saved the day. Rumblings of war didn’t help the atmosphere, Frida didn’t have too many kind words for most of the French citizens, and health problems plagued her during some of the time she was there. She DID make an important friendship with Mary Reynolds, an artist in her own right in bookbinding and partner to Marcel Duchamp. This first painting photo, The Frame, was the first painting bought by the Louvre that was created by a Mexican/Hispanic artist, it’s still a property of the French state, and you still have until July 13 to see it and the wonderful other exhibits. Here are more photos.

I will absolutely positively go back to Mexico City. The ONLY thing that I’ll change about the experience is that I’ll let someone else do the driving! Click the ‘Contact’ link on my website or on my social media platforms to tell you the story about my Mexico City driving adventures. Everyone I came into contact with was very friendly & helpful as much as they could be. This bucket list experience was beyond my dreams!