Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo: Amazon.ca: Hayden Herrera, Kimberly Schraf: Books

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"A haunting, highly vivid biography." (Ms. magazine ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

Hailed by readers and critics across the country, this engrossing biography of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo reveals a woman of extreme magnetism and originality, an artist whose sensual vibrancy came straight from her own experiences: her childhood near Mexico City during the Mexican Revolution; a devastating accident at age eighteen that left her crippled and unable to bear children; her tempestuous marriage to muralist Diego Rivera and intermittent love affairs with men as diverse as Isamu Noguchi and Leon Trotsky; her association with the Communist Party; her absorption in Mexican folklore and culture; and her dramatic love of spectacle.

Here is the tumultuous life of an extraordinary twentieth-century woman -- with illustrations as rich and haunting as her legend.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Customer Reviews

23 Reviews

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
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Average Customer Review

4.8 out of 5 stars (23 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Complete and Complex Like Frida, Jun 22 2004

By

V. Marshall (North Fork, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo (Paperback)

Hayden Herrera has written an excellent portrait of the great artist Frida Kahlo, complete in thought and tender in describing a woman well lived.

Frida Kahlo is the ultimate survivor and represents women for their strength, tenderness, fierceness and suffering compassion. She lived during a time when women had few rights, especially Mexican women, she faced the dreadfulness of the Mexican Revolution in her early years, a bout with polio, a horrible bus accident that attempted to cripple her for life, an often unfaithful husband, criticism of her dreams, activism, accused Communism and many exciting adventures in life. She lived a true artistic life and her paintings represent the complicated nature of her inner soul. She loved hard and fought often, for her rights, her dreams and her man. While bed-ridden and suffering in the severest of agony she taught herself to paint, her body encased in a huge white cast, she painted to survive and reached the other end with a unique perspective on art. Her life and home were surrounded with color, a rainbow that never needed the promise of something golden at the end. She danced her own rhythm and never stopped walking her own path. This is a woman to be admired!

Herrera does an excellent job as the biographer of this phenomenally complicated woman. Her research is thorough and her suggestions entirely believable. You will be transported back in time into the life of a controversial woman who deserves every ounce of recognition that Herrera has given us.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Seminal Study on Enigmatic Personality, Nov 18 2003

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Alan Cambeira "author of Azucar's Trilogy" (Dominican Republic, author of Tattered Paradise...Azucar's Trilogy Ends) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo (Paperback)

This is an extremely important, long overdue and commanding work on one of the most significant artistic personalities of the 20th century. The author, Hayden Herrera, is perhaps one of the few best qualified writers to present this indepth, intense penetration into the tumultuous life and work of such a complex figure in the art world. Frida Kahlo, as readers/viewers in the United States by now are aware, created some of the most unconventionally brilliant --even shocking works of arts the world has seen. Herrera's impeccable scholarship and research skills are impressive and at the same time delicately compassionate and vibrant. The movie version, by the way, was wonderful and Salma Hayek was amazing in the lead role. Thank you Hayden; thank you Frida! Absolutely spectacular subject.

Alan Cambeira
Author of AZUCAR! The Story of Sugar (a novel)

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5.0 out of 5 stars The definitive Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo Y Calderón, Sep 10 2006

By

bernie "xyzzy" (Arlington, Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo (Paperback)

The are many good books on the market that show some of Frida's best work and many that have a good overview of her life as the daughter of Wilhelm Kahlo and the "on and off wife" of the famous mural painter Diego Rivera.

What sets this book out from the multitude is the attention to detail. There are actual correspondences from and to Frida. Also many things that may be glossed over are covered well enough that you feel you were there.

I originally say the movie based on this book "Frida" (2002) with Salma Hayek. Many of the references in the movie were not covered even in the extensive commentaries. The book also has the time to cover the background of Frida's parents, grandparents, her friends and their relatives. We know about her trolley accident but not that much about her bout with polio.

The plates, some in color others of monochrome photos are placed on groups but referenced through out the book. Agree the descriptions they can be appreciated for not only themselves but what they meant to Frida and her friends. We also get a small glimpse of Mexico before and after the revolution.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A thorough rendering of an artist's life
This biography is a complete, engaging 440-page effort of sheer reportage. Herrera, an art historian and curator, has also written a book on Kahlo's art, and books on Mary Frank... Read more

Published on Feb 18 2004 by Stacey M Jones

5.0 out of 5 stars Frida Kahlo is Alive and Well
The greatest compliment one could offer a biographer is that she has brought to life her subject with honesty and insight. Well, I offer this compliment to Hayden Herrera. Read more

Published on Feb 1 2004 by Daniel Olivas