Frida Khalo - The Two Fridas

For my artwork that I wish to analyse, I decided upon Frida Khalo's "the Two Fridas". I wanted to examine one of Frida Kahlo's works since I find them very interesting and I wanted to learn more about her life and art, and how they are connected. Out of her many self-portraits, I chose "the Two Fridas" because I was fascinated by all the symbolism, the surrealism, and how she has created the painting.

In her artwork, Frida Khalo has a very bold style, reflecting a very distinct personality, and it appears as though she just lets all her emotions flow directly into the canvas. This is something which is relevant to my own project as my self-portrait should distinctly reflect the two polars of my personality and feelings.

In the painting there are two women who look like Frida Khalo (hence the title - "the Two Fridas) with her trademark "moustache", monobrow and up-done hair. The two different personalities do most likely originate from her feelings after her, at the time, recent separation from Diego Riviera, who was also and artist.

The woman on the right is the part of Frida that Diego still loves, and she carries a small, oval portrait of Diego as a child, linked to both of the hearts of the two Fridas with a vein, suggesting a deep relationship between the two.

On the left is the abandoned and unloved Frida.While the loved Frida is wearing a traditional dress, the unloved is wearing a white formal European dress, probably referring to her dual heritage. Both hearts of the two Fridas are exposed, but where the loved Frida's heart is unscathed, the ripped bodice of the rejected Frida reveals a broken, damaged heart. The rejected Frida also holds a pair of medical pliers in her right hand, pinching a vein with blood flowing onto her pristine, white dress, creating quite an uncanny contrast. Frida might be attempting to stop the ties between her and Diego, as Frida once said: 

"My blood is the miracle that travels in the veins of the air from my heart to yours". 

She might also be try to stop the bleeding which Diego has caused, or cutting off the vein from the portrait of Diego.

The two Fridas also differ in colour usage. The stormy background is turbulent on both sides, reflecting Frida's distress, but the right is distinguishably darker than the left. With also the different dress and skin colour, the right side is generally darker than the left, something which I intend to do in my painting, although I will have a more clear "line" separating the sides.
The two Fridas are holding each others' hands, something which can be interperated to Frida having only herself and her imagination for consolidation.