Frida

Author: Jonah Winter
Illustrator: Ana Juan
Published by: Scholastic Press 2002
Genre: Biography, Picture Book, Multi-cultural
Age Range: grades 2-4

This book is a biography of the life of Mexican female artist Frida Kahlo. It begins with her childhood where the reader learns about her family. Frida's dad was a photographer and she had 5 sisters which meant she had a very busy mother. The reader also learns that she was very sick as a child and learned how to draw because she was confined to her bed for so long. Art becomes a source of happiness and escape for little Frida. As she grows older she learns how to paint photographs from her father and teaches herself how to paint her own pictures. During her school age years she is in a horrible bus accident and almost dies, but in the end, she survives but to walk with a cane and cope with a body that always hurt. This experience finds its way into her artwork. She expresses her pain through her paintings and her painting is always there for her even when she is restricted by a cast around her torso. She also incorporates her Mexican culture into her paintings but retains her own unique style.

I thought this was a really cool book because it is a children's book about a Mexican female artist. It is hard enough to find non-Western cultures and/or women in art museums, so to have a children's book about one is very impressive. I really enjoyed how the illustrator painted (acrylics on wax paper) with bright colors, this will give readers a better understanding of Kahlo's style. When looking through the book there are many little surprises that help point towards Kahlo's work or Mexican culture. On almost every page there is a little skeleton figure or head. This references the Mexican tradition of the Day of the Dead, Dios los Muercos. On several of the pages the way the illustrator has set up the page mimics painting by Kahlo like the two Fridas holding hands as a girl or the older Frida wrapped in vines.

This book could be used to help students learn about Frida Kahlo. It is important for students to learn about artists of the past and especially those of non-Western cultures. In the past, mostly European artists have been studied and other cultures like that of Mexico or Africa have been overlooked. This would be a good way to look into the Mexican culture and learn about the art that is traditional there. In a lot of North Carolina schools there has been an increase in hispanic students. Incorporating their culture and background will not only help their confidence by showing that there culture is important to learn about in schools too, but hopefully it would help students understand more about each other and improve relationships.

To aid in learning about the person that a children's biography is about students could look up more information and write a bio poem.

My Frida Bio Poem

Frida
Smart, Creative, Unique, Suffering
Twice, the Wife of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera.

Lover of Drawing, Painting, and Bright Colors

Who felt lonely, sad but hopeful.
Who found happiness in painting.

Who needed to walk with a cane because of injuries from a bus accident.

Who gives credit to her Mexican culture in her painting style and themes.
Who feared not being able to paint because it was her escape from her sickness and pain.
Who wanted to see herself become a professional painter but received most of her fame after her death.

Who enjoyed painting self-portaits to express her pain.
Who likes to wear long socks to hide her less developed right leg, due to polio.
Resident of La Casa Azul (the blue house) that is now a museum in Coyoacan, Mexico

Kahlo