A Woman to Know: Cristina Kahlo
I was born a bitch. I was born a painter. — Frida Kahlo
(image via Frida Kahlo)
We can only see so much of Cristina Kahlo. We see almost all of it through the life and art of her famous sister, Frida Kahlo.
Cristina, the youngest Kahlo daughter, often posed for her infirm sister's paintings. She acted at times as a divine-like wet nurse, a dreamy goddess, and later — seen above — as herself. Following an ugly divorce, Cristina and her children moved into Frida's house, the one they shared with Diego Rivera, Frida's husband-lover-muse-collaborator. Cristina would even pose for some characters in Diego's famous murals.
After Frida caught her beloved sister and Diego having an affair, she painted one of her bloodiest, most gruesome works, this time partly inspired by Cristina's betrayal.
And yet at the end of the famous artist's life, Cristina again showed up for her sister, resuming the nurse role she had enacted in the painting from their childhood.
Add to your library list:
Frida Kahlo: An Open Life (Raquel Tibol)
Frida Kahlo: A Biography (Claudia Schaefer)
Read more:
Diary of a Mad Artist (Vanity Fair)
Frida Kahlo's popularity soars, her family struggles to maintain her legacy (Reuters)
Nikolas Murray's Intimiate Kahlo Portraits (Sotheby's)
Hear more:
Frida Kahlo: An Introspective Life (Stuff You Missed in History Class)
See more:
Frida Kahlo: Appearances Can Be Deceiving (The Brooklyn Museum)
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