Frida Kahlo is regarded as one of Mexico's greatest painters: her
extraordinary personal style, her tragic story, her relationship with
Diego Rivera (the more famous painter in their day) alongside her
passionate paintings have made her a cult figure since she died over
sixty years ago.
But beyond the familiar images there is a private story about a daughter
who confided in her beloved mama, Matilde Calderon Kahlo. Until now
Frida's handwritten letters have only been available to scholars - and
recently in Spanish in a book that appeared in 2016. Now for the first
time we have over fifty of these letters in English.
And what a treasure. Funny, observant and honest, they chart Kahlo's
relationship with her mother; a relationship that was sometimes
fraught - as with most mother and daughters - but was always alive and
honest. They begin in 1923 when Kahlo was sixteen and continue until the
death of her mother in 1932. These letters tell us about Kahlo's
anxieties, her feelings about her husband and friends and above all
reveal the marvelous, critical painter's eye in her description of
people and places from Mexico, San Francisco and New York.
Edited, translated and introduced by Dr. Héctor Jaimes, Professor of
Spanish, North Carolina State University (who edited the Spanish
version) this book is published with paintings and photographs.
