So I was writing a blog post and out of nowhere felt an urge to take a selfie. I pulled out my phone, opened the camera app, but right as I was about to snap a studly selfie I though, “lets do it Frida Kahlo style.”

Frida Kahlo, aka the queen of selfies, was one of the most influential Mexican painters of all time. As you know, CAT 125 is focused on the self so of course Frida is part of the curriculum. Whats so special about this self absorbed Mexican woman? Firstly, she wasn’t actually so self absorbed. Though her works often times depict versions of herself, they are vehicles for conveyance of a more profound message. Kahlo used her self portraits as political, social and economic statements.

Many see Kahlo’s life as one surmounted by pain and hardship. When she was young a spear struck her uterus, rendering her to have many miscarriages. She depicted these sorrowful events in her works (which was controversial during the time), however, she did not dwell only on these events. She shows her perseverance during hardship through her work.

Anyway, I was wondering how I was going to do a Frida Kahlo style selfie. I began with a canvas and some oil paints. A few hours later the canvas had on it a painting of my face with a skateboard sticking out of it. I titled the piece “Head with skateboard sticking out of it”. Art critics would most likely understand the underlying meaning to be about my terrible injuries from skateboarding. Though these injuries were terrible, I continued to live and take selfies.

Kahlo was a revolutionary. She was not afraid to depict things that were uncanny and made others feel uncomfortable. It is apparent from her paintings that she identified with many aspects of life including death. The messages that Frida supported will live on eternally through her work.