Analysis of Frida Kahlo Paintings
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Kenyatta University *
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Arts Humanities
Date
Nov 24, 2024
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Uploaded by DrRockToad491
Analysis of Frida Kahlo Paintings
In the painting
Tree of Hope
there is duality where it is divided into two halves with a
representation of light and dark. The painting is about her and indicates the traumatic life
experience she had gone through. This shows the duality of life and experience where we need to
remain strong as there is hope. The image on the left shows a woman lying down on a hospital
bed with a visible scar while on the left mostly on the middle is a painting of a woman sitting
down as a queen holding a flag with a message of hope. This is the duality represented in the
image. The colors in the painting have symbols. According to Olesen (2013), colors have
different symbolisms in different cultures globally. The red color for the gown evoke passion and
emotion while representing or associated with prosperity (Olesen, 2013). The flag is written in
red, which also represents prosperity and hope. The yellow color of the flag represents new life
and new beginnings (Olesen, 2013). White is associated with general unhappiness and bad
fortune (Olesen, 2013) and this is the color of the sheets that the scared woman is covered with.
While the left of the painting is light, the color of the grass is not green but burnt down and
orange which indicates suffering. The painting
Portrait of Lucha
Maria
also has duality with the
division also representing light and darkness with a moon and the sun in the clouds. The drawing
has an innocent girl in the middle that seems to have gotten lost. Like all human beings, the
innocent girl in the portrait goes through internal contradictions which is light and darkness, or
bad and good. It symbolizes how a body could have different psychological aspects. The colors
in the painting, which is white for the dress, may represent purity and innocence of the girl.
The style in these works is important as the duality is used to understand and explore life.
Many artists have adopted the style and Frida Kahlo has used it in most of her paintings. The
style is important as the paintings allows us to understand the internal contradictions in human
life for example the split between the mind or spirit and the body. In the humanities frame, the
medium of the two works is an artistic painting that focuses on giving hope. The creator of the
paintings is Frida Kahlo. From the humanities frame, what stand out from the paintings is the
relative importance at the times that they were created and its importance to current students of
humanities. The relative importance of the painting at the time was the representation of
suffering at the time and the disabilities we go through in life and why these disabilities should
not out us down, as we should always have hope. The painting is important to the current
humanities student as it allows for the understanding of human beings and the need to be
enlightened and confront trauma which is part of life.
Reference
Olesen, J. (2013). Color symbolism in different cultures around the world. Retrieved from
https://www.color-meanings.com/color-symbolism-different-cultures/
Hi Harrison,
Great analysis and it is good that you provide a brief history or context of the artist Frida Kahlo.
What she went through was an inspiration to most of her paintings and the two paintings
Tree of
Hope
and
Portrait of Lucha
Maria
, which were created using duality with both having light and
darkness representing the bad and the good in the world. Through the humanities frame, these
paintings could be seen to represent the hard times that they were painted including the World
War. Do you think that the color red of the gown in the painting
Tree of Hope
could represent
anything or evoke any feelings?
Hello Luis,
It is true that both images makes the audience think of light and day at first glance since they are
divided into two. This could represent suffering and recovery or hope among human beings. As
you state, art is a powerful tool and could be used to show the psychological differences in the
lives of human beings. What do you think about the color and imagery used by Khalo?
Clip Comment 3: Belonging to a Social Class
The two videos offer insights into social class within the society. The CNN video on Black in
America provides an experience of being Black and in the upper class as they do not match the
stereotype of being Black, which is mainly poverty. The video on being an American Middle
class provides the three criteria of being middle class. Income, net worth, and lifestyle are the
three criteria. These are interesting ideas. I believe that all people belong to a social class based
on their financial situations. However, it is wrong to stereotype people and classify them into a
particular social class based on their race. Social class and race should not be related and I
believe that the three criteria provided in the video should be used for social classification. This
is because, to live the lifestyle of the upper, middle, or lower income, the financial aspect plays
an important part.
Curious Question Week 3
Lecture 13 on homeless families talks generally about homeless families. While the other
lectures compare aspects in racial and type of family such as single families, there is no
comparison of homelessness within the racial categorization. The issue of homeownership is also
not discussed and some of the racial barriers to homeownership. This left me wondering how
homeownership in the United States has been categorized based on family aspects.
The article by Jimenez (2022) compares the race gap between the white and black homeowners
in America. According to the article, only 44% of Black Americans own homes which is lower
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compared to the 75% of While American home ownership. One of the main reason for this is that
these people are almost twice as likely to be denied mortgage. The woman that was interviewed
in the article says that she knows of African Americans that have struggled getting loans despite
affording them and White friends that have gotten loans quickly despite not affording them. This
gap has been reflected nationally as research has shown that the gap between black and white
homeownership rates is the widest in the United States within the last 120 years (Jimenez, 2022).
Overall, while not all people that do not own homes are homeless as some are able to rent,
homeownership offers a sense of freedom and financial stability. However, the racial disparity
shows that there is more that needs to be addressed.
Link:
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-61845304