FRIDA KAHLO: TORMENT AND TRIUMPH
Category: Books,Biographies & Memoirs,Arts & Literature
FRIDA KAHLO: TORMENT AND TRIUMPH Details
From Publishers Weekly A delicately beautiful woman who smoked and drank "like a mariachi" and enjoyed her own sexual freedom even as she suffered the infidelities of her adored husband Diego Rivera, Kahlo painted ferociously honest visions of her private world. In this first volume of the Bantam-Barnard Biography series, Drucker graphically recounts the artist's devastating accident and tortured physical life with a fearlessness to match Kahlo's own. No apologies are made for Kahlo's many love affairs with both men and women or for her unabashed support of Communism as a means of allaying endemic poverty. Detailed analyses of Kahlo's autobiographical paintings convey the surreal morbidity of Mexican culture as well as the facts of a brief but abundantly gifted life. From the opening scenes of a young, polio-stricken Frida conjuring up an imaginary friend to the final hallucinatory image of the dead artist, we are irresistibly drawn to this woman whose life has much to teach about passion, courage and self-determination. Ages 14-up. Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. Read more From School Library Journal Grade 7 Up-- A compelling story of one of Mexico's best-known painters. Kahlo once said, "I have suffered two accidents in my life . . . one in which a streetcar ran over me. The other is Diego." Suffering damage to her spine and legs in the first of these accidents when she was 18 years old, she lived in constant pain for 47 years. The second accident she refers to was her tumultuous marriage to Diego Rivera, the famous muralist. Most of her paintings are autobiographical, many describing aspects of her suffering in a style that incorporated aspects of native Mexican art. Drucker's story of this fascinating, enormously creative woman who enjoyed so much in life despite her pain is well researched and eminently readable. There is a small but helpful selection of black-and-white photographs and reproductions of Kahlo's paintings as well as an excellent introduction. --Ann Stell, The Smithtown Library, NYCopyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. Read more From Kirkus Reviews In the first title in the ``Bernard-Bantam Biography'' series, an experienced writer of nonfiction delves into the life of a Mexican painter whose reputation is suddenly in the ascendant, in a straightforward account of her life that emphasizes her unquenchable spirit. The sections that relate Kahlo's earliest artistic efforts to the circumstances of her life are especially strong; her tumultuous marriage to muralist Diego Rivera is also effectively portrayed. To include a chronology, an index, and six color reproductions of art plus b&w photos (not seen). (Biography. 12+) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. Read more
Reviews
I found "Frida Kahlo: Torment and Triumph in Her Life and Art" to be succinct and informative. Having just finished Hayden Herrera's biography of Kahlo I wasn't sure what to expect, as this book is one third in length. But as the saying goes, "don't judge a book by its cover". Drucker stays focused and presents a very direct and honest look into the sometimes joy filled but more often sorrow filled life of this magnificent artist.Drucker reveals the soul of Kahlo that she offered through her art. Only a woman could write about the sufferings and feelings of another women with a refreshing openness that does not oppress the senses. While this is not an all out definitive biography, Drucker gives one enough insight to appreciate the artist and the woman behind the paintings.This book is a very good introduction to Frida Kahlo for anyone interested.