Rachel Mannino
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Rachel's Musings

A Wicked Woman: The Rebellious Frida Kahlo

5/11/2016

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Frida Kahlo de Rivera, born Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderón, was a Mexican painter known for her self-portraits.

Kahlo's life began and ended in Mexico City, in her home, which is known as "La Casa Azul," the Blue House. Her work has been celebrated internationally as emblematic of Mexican national and indigenous traditions, and by feminists for its uncompromising depiction of the female experience and form.

Mexican culture and tradition are important in her work, which has been sometimes characterized as naïve art or folk art. Her work has also been described as surrealist, and in 1938 André Breton, principal initiator of the surrealist movement, described Kahlo's art as a "ribbon around a bomb". Frida rejected the "surrealist" label imposed by Breton, as she argued that her work reflected more of her reality than her dreams.

Kahlo had a volatile marriage with the famous Mexican artist Diego Rivera. She suffered lifelong health problems, many of which were caused by a traffic accident she survived as a teenager. Recovering from her injuries isolated her from other people, and this isolation influenced her works, many of which are self-portraits. Kahlo suggested, "I paint myself because I am so often alone and because I am the subject I know best."

Not known by many people was some of her rebellious and thoroughly wicked proclivities. She was known to dress in men’s clothing and even cut her hair “like a man” once. Frida liked to drink, smoke, and say countless profanities. She liked to engage in sexual relations with both men and women. These acts were all seen as rebellious behavior back in the early 1900’s, but after analyzing these acts with a modern feminist perspective we can see them as unconventional/revolutionary feminist acts of her time. She was who she was.

Like most female visual artists, Frida is notable simply for daring to venture into the visual artist field. During her time, there was little to no dealers or museums that would have her work or any other woman’s work simply because they were considered amateurs in a man’s field. 

To Frida, thanks for paving the way for countless female artists of the future!

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The Reluctant "First Lady of the World"

5/4/2016

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Today, we celebrate the life and legacy of the great Eleanor Roosevelt. Thanks to reader Gloria for suggesting her!

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was an American politician, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, and served as United States Delegate to the United Nations General Assembly from 1945 to 1952. President Harry S. Truman later called her the "First Lady of the World" in tribute to her human rights achievements.

Roosevelt had an unhappy childhood, suffering the deaths of both parents and one of her brothers at a young age. She married her fifth cousin once removed, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in 1905. She regularly made public appearances on her husband's behalf, and as First Lady, she significantly reshaped and redefined the role of that office during her own tenure and beyond, for future First Ladies. Having known all of the twentieth century's previous First Ladies, she was seriously depressed at having to assume the role, which had traditionally been restricted to domesticity and hostessing. Eleanor's distress at these precedents was severe enough that Hickok subtitled her biography of Roosevelt "Reluctant First Lady".

Though widely respected in her later years, Roosevelt was a controversial First Lady for her outspokenness, particularly her stance on racial issues. She was the first presidential spouse to hold press conferences, write a syndicated newspaper column, and speak at a national convention. On a few occasions, she publicly disagreed with her husband's policies. She launched an experimental community at Arthurdale, West Virginia, for the families of unemployed miners, later widely regarded as a failure. She advocated for expanded roles for women in the workplace, the civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees.

Following her husband's death, Roosevelt remained active in politics for the rest of her life. She pressed the United States to join and support the United Nations and became its first delegate. She served as the first chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights, and oversaw the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Later she chaired the John F. Kennedy administration's Presidential Commission on the Status of Women. By the time of her death, Roosevelt was regarded as "one of the most esteemed women in the world."

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    My thoughts:

    I write about power dynamics in relationships, the empowerment of women, and the ethical and moral dilemmas love can create in our lives. This is a space where I meditate on those themes and share them with the word. Who knows, my next novel may start right here...

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