ARTES DE MÉXICO EN UTAH ANNOUNCES VIVA FRIDA!,
A FREE MONTH-LONG CELEBRATION OF THE ART AND LIFE OF FRIDA KAHLO,
WHOSE LIFE INCLUDED LITTLE-KNOWN CONNECTIONS TO UTAH
September 16 - October 20
http://www.vivafridautah.org/Viva_Frida_Utah/Dates.html
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Susan Vogel, English, 801-707-7795 or artesmexicoutah@gmail.com
Bernardo Flores-Sahagún, Spanish, 801-414-0136
www.vivafridautah.org
Salt Lake City, August 10, 2011—Artes de México en Utah is pleased to present Viva Frida!, a celebration of the art of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo and Mexico’s rich artistic traditions. Viva Frida! will take place over five weeks this fall at the Salt Lake City Public Main and branch libraries, and in local art galleries, including Mestizo Coffeehouse and Art Access/VSA of Utah.
About Viva Frida!
The Viva Frida! celebration centers on an exhibit about the life of world-renowned Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, which will be on display in the Atrium of the Main Library from September 16 to October 20, 2011, with a smaller display that includes images of her most graphic work at Art Access/VSA of Utah. “Viva Frida! is an opportunity for us to share with the overall community this rich cultural and artistic heritage,” says Bernardo Flores-Sahagún, a board member of Artes de México en Utah, and an architect and designer from Guadalajara, Mexico. “Mexico is much more than what we read in the press today. The traditions of Frida and other artists of her time are very powerful. The art of Frida Kahlo inspires people to be creative and enriches our entire community.”
The Viva Frida! celebration will emphasize an interesting Utah-Mexico art connection. Kahlo crossed paths with several Utahns:
• Pablo O’Higgins (born Paul Higgins, 1904-83), a native of Salt Lake City, Utah, who was an assistant to Diego Rivera
• Tina Misrachi Martin, whose father was Diego Rivera’s art dealer from 1935-45
• Mimi Muray Levitt, daughter of photographer Nickolas Muray
• Joseph Hansen (1910-79), a native of Richfield, Utah, who was the secretary of Leon Trotsky during his exile in Mexico—in part at the Kahlo home—from 1937 to 1940, and Hansen’s wife, whom he met the University of Utah, Reba Hooper Hansen, a granddaughter of Heber C. Kimball.
The Viva Frida! exhibit documents the life of Kahlo, whose self-portraits have become cultural icons. Through photographs, text (in English with Spanish translation available), the exhibit tells the story of Kahlo’s life, from her birth at the beginning of the Mexican Revolution, to her death in 1954.
Kahlo was at the center of what has been called the Mexican Mural Renaissance, the decades following the Mexican Revolution when art and political idealism combined and gave rise to a creative period the likes of which has rarely been seen in history. This period in Mexican art was influential in the creation of the Works Projects Administration in the U.S. in the 1940s as well as in art of political activism worldwide. Artists everywhere, including in Utah, continue to be influenced by many Mexican artistic traditions including mural painting, graphic art, and folk art.
The Viva Frida! display consists of 36 large (54” x 38”) panels that include photographs of Frida Kahlo and her husband Diego Rivera, information about her life, and high quality digital images of 46 of her paintings. The images of her paintings are from major collections in Mexico including the Dolores Olmedo Patiño Museum and the Frida Kahlo Museum. The three panels at Art Access/VSA of Utah (230 So. 500 W.) are a portion of the exhibit with the theme “How Painting Saved My Life.” They focus on her suffering due to her physical disabilities and inability to have children. Viva Frida! has previously been shown in Tokyo and Las Vegas.
Complementing the Viva Frida! display will be an exhibit of the photographs of Nickolas Muray, a New York photographer who took the most famous photographs of Kahlo and who was an intimate friend. This exhibit will be in two locations, the Salt Lake Main Library and Mestizo Coffeehouse, 631 W. North Temple.
Levitt and Martin will be present at several events during Viva Frida!, to discuss their memories of Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Rufino Tamayo, Miguel Covarrubias, and other Mexican artists.
Artes has created text and educational materials in both English and Spanish to accompany the exhibits.
The five-week Viva Frida! celebration includes more than 15 events and activities all of which are open to the public and free with the exception of one that requires a ticket to the Utah State Fair.
About Frida Kahlo
Frida Kahlo identified with the 1910-21 Mexican Revolution, which sought to bring dignity and self-rule to Mexico after a century of dominance by European interests that followed its 1810 independence from Spain. Kahlo was born in 1907 but changed her birth date to that of the Revolution to align herself with the values of the revolution, including dignity of the worker, compassion for the poor, education for all, and the right of Mexico to control its resources and destiny.
Born of a German Jewish father and a Mexican Catholic mother, Kahlo chose to identify with her Mexican indigenous ancestors. She often dressed in Tehuana clothing and surrounded herself with Mexican archeological figures and folk art. Her paintings show a connection with indigenous beliefs that value the natural world and its ongoing need for renewal.
Kahlo studied at Mexico’s most prestigious high school, the National Preparatory School, where she saw Diego Rivera painting murals. She met Rivera in 1928, three years after a devastating trolley car accident disabled her for life. The couple’s marriage in 1929 placed her alongside Mexico’s most famous artist – Rivera had been chosen to teach Mexicans the ideals of the Revolution through colorful murals on the walls of public buildings.
Overshadowed by her famous, gregarious husband, Kahlo quietly painted small canvases exploring her identity and emotions. But in the late 1930’s her art and life exploded as she suffered through Rivera’s infidelities and her own physical challenges due to illnesses and injuries. Frida used art to heal, and today is an inspiration to many people developing their creativity and seeking to overcome physical and emotional challenges. Although Kahlo received great acclaim for her art during her life, this was primarily in the U.S. and Europe. She did not have a solo exhibit of her art in Mexico until the year before her death.
The Viva Frida! celebration is made possible by funding from the Utah Humanities Council, the Utah Arts Council, Friends of the Library, and Wells Fargo Bank, as well as generous in-kind contributions from the Salt Lake Public Library System, Nickolas Muray Photo Archives, Comcast, Utah Partners for Health, Latinos in Action, The Consulate of Mexico, Art Access/VSA of Utah Gallery, Mestizo Institute of Culture and Art, Comunidades Unidas, Alliance Community Services, Intermountain Health Care, Utah Diabetes and Endocrinology Center, South Valley Sanctuary, Utah AIDS Foundation, Planned Parenthood, American Advertising Federation-Utah, Ana Esmee Design, and Alta Lodge.
In presenting Viva Frida! Artes de México en Utah has received generous support from additional community partners including the University of Utah Latin American Studies Program, Utah Museum of Fine Arts, University of Utah College of Fine Art, Utah Humanities Council 14th Annual Book Festival, Salt Lake City School District, Utah Coalition de la Raza, Fiesta Mexicana, Centro Civico Mexicano, Latin American Chamber of Commerce, Vox Creative, Utah Cultural Celebration Center, The Moab Multicultural Center, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and Imagine Peace Festival.
Free Public Programs and Events
For a full listing of Viva Frida! programming, please see our website, www.vivafridautah.org
About Artes de México en Utah
Artes de México en Utah is a new organization dedicated to promoting Mexican art in Utah. It was founded as an independent nonprofit after the success of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts’s exhibits Las Artes de México and Pablo O’Higgins: Works on Paper. Artes’s board of directors consists of Utah artists, art scholars, and art collectors, the majority of whom were born in Mexico; its advisory board includes scholars in the areas of Latin American art history, Spanish language and literature, and Latin American studies; a university museum curator and fundraising professional; and community leaders. Artes de México en Utah is staffed 100% by volunteers.
For more information:
801.707.7795 Susan Vogel (English)
801.414.0136 Bernardo Flores-Sahagún (Spanish)
www.vivafridautah.org
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment