I recommend her to you, not as a husband but as an enthusiastic admirer of her work, acid and tender, hard as steel and delicate and fine as a butterfly's wing, loveable as a beautiful smile, and profound and cruel as the bitterness of life.
Diego Rivera
Marta Herford begins the exhibition season 2015 with the extraordinary exhibition project "Frida Kahlo – the photos". In cabinets reminiscent of the colours in Kahlo's paintings, more than 60 years after the death of the Mexican artist (1907–1954) the museum is showing a selection from her extensive photo archive which was presented to the public for the first time in 2007. In her treasure trove of pictures Frida collected photos of friends, of her family, of Diego Rivera, but also of herself taken by unknown photographers. The first presentation of her collection in Germany comprises 241 photographs put together by Pablo Ortiz Monasterio for the Museo Frida Kahlo in Mexico. In six central theme areas ranging from the origins to the blue house, her damaged body, her loved ones, right up to politics, revolution and Diego, the exhibition illuminates the important role that the photographic image played in the life of the painter Frida Kahlo.
The medium of photography took on a special significance from an early age for the daughter of a German—Hungarian professional photographer who emigrated from Germany to Mexico at the age of 18. The numerous portraits that Guillermo Kahlo made of his daughter display not only her self-confident manner in front of the camera but also left Frida with a deep consciousness of the graphic power of self-staging. Works by famous photographers such as Man Ray, Martin Munkácsi, Brassaï, Tina Modotti, Lola and Manual Álvarez Bravo as well as Edward Weston are mixed with pictures of writers or artists who were her friends or who she admired.
The life and work of Frida Kahlo are inextricably interwoven with each other, which is also reflected in her photo collection. Her damaged body, her pain and suffering, but also her loves, are recurrent themes in the photographs. Nickolas Muray, with whom she also had a relationship, shows her in very intimate and vulnerable poses. Other photos are evidence of how her body was increasingly scarred by illness. This image is interrupted by pictures showing her in the company of her friends, relaxing or partying – happy scenes that express her joie de vivre. It is also remarkable how she treated the photographs: for the artist they were treasured and familiar objects which she coloured and cut, marking them with thoughts and notes, and sometimes even with kisses.
Another room is dedicated to the subject of politics, revolution and Diego. The pictures make the political atmosphere of the times palpable. The documentations of industrial buildings such as the Ford works in Detroit are juxtaposed with the leaders of Russian socialism, Lenin, Trotsky and Stalin. Many of the photos also show the Mexican artist Diego Rivera to whom Frida was married from 1929 and who remained a focal point of her romantic and emotional life.
Venuew.- Marta Herford Museum. Goebenstr. 2–10, 32052 Herford. Germany.
Dates.- 1 February to 10 May 2015.
Title Frida Kahlo – Her photos.
Curator.-. Pablo Ortiz Monasterio.
Exhibition organizers at Marta Herford.- Roland Nachtigäller (artistic director). Ann Kristin Kreisel (assistant curator). Friederike Fast (curator).
Exhibits 241 photographs.
Artists Frida Kahlo; Man Ray, Martin Munkácsi, Edward Weston, Brassaï, Tina Modotti and others.
Exhibition area ca. 400 m²
