by Abigail Neri-Alvarez ’26

A woman I admire is Frida Kahlo. Frida was born July 6, 1907 and died July 13, 1954. She was a Mexican Bisexual Woman. She was also a Mexican painter known for her portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by nature and artifacts of Mexico.

She was famous for her unique personality and complicated life. She contracted polio when she was around 6 years old. At that time, there were no treatments which left her with some physical disabilities. More so with her right leg and foot.

Later on at the age of 18, she got into a severe bus accident that left her bedridden. During her time there, she started to paint. She had also considered becoming a medical illustrator as a career which would combine her interest in science and art. She would go on to create 143 paintings. She mostly drew self-portraits because she was often alone and she was a subject she knew best.

I admire her because even through all her pain and suffering, she still continued to paint. Not only that, but used that pain, suffering, and trauma in her art works. Like with the bus accident, she painted her pain and how she felt. What I learned from her is that you can use your own experiences and turn them into beautiful, meaningful, symbolic art works and so much more.