DMA’s Frida: Beyond The Myth Offers a New Perspective on a Legendary Artist

On Aug. 18, the Dallas Museum of Art will debut its latest exhibition, Frida: Beyond the Myth, an exploration of the life and work of Frida Kahlo.

Kahlo’s work is widely known. It’s the sort of thing you’re as likely to find on a T-shirt at the mall as on the walls of a museum. Despite her renown, she remains elusive. The self-portraits she’s best known for tell only part of the truth. In some cases, it doesn’t tell the truth at all.

“We’re basically trying to tell the full story,” Sue Canterbury, the exhibition’s co-curator, tells the Observer. “She wasn’t forthcoming. […] She was very misleading at times. Trying to reveal some of those aspects about her and her life are key to this exhibition.”

Frida accomplishes this by displaying Kahlo’s work alongside other people’s depictions of her throughout her life. There are photos and paintings of her when she was 4 years old right up to a photo of her on her deathbed. The images were created by her husband, Diego Rivera and by family, friends, lovers and other people close to her.

One photo shows Kahlo working on her final completed painting. The painting itself is hanging just a few feet away.

“I think that it’s unusual,” Canterbury says. “So many exhibitions concentrate on the obvious, the same. They don’t always go beneath, or they’re not always looking at her from other perspectives.”

One “misleading” item Kahlo offered was that she was born in 1910 rather than her actual birth year, 1907. This was done to associate her with the Mexican Revolution, which began in 1910. While this birthdate isn’t true, it does speak to Kahlo’s strong opinions on decolonization, a theme that comes through in much of her work.

The more vulnerable work on display comes from moments of trauma in Kahlo’s life. From a gruesome trolley accident that almost killed her in her youth to a sketch that depicts one of her abortions, finding inspiration in hardship is a running theme.

“We want you to see a woman who went through so many things in life, but became a symbol of resilience,” said Dr. Augustin Arteaga, the DMA’s director and co-curator of Frida, at a media preview of the exhibition.

In addition to its framing device, Frida is unique in that it includes every artistic technique Kahlo used over her life. Her familiar self-portraits are housed alongside sketches, watercolors, still lifes and rarely seen pastel work.

Also featured is “The Suicide of Dorothy Hale,” Kahlo’s shocking and controversial depiction of the death of the titular actress. The work was commissioned by a friend of Hale, who assumed Kahlo would paint a standard, tasteful memorial portrait. It’s not surprising that the recipient considered destroying the painting, but we’re glad they didn’t. It’s one of the truly unique pieces in the collection.

Tickets for the exhibition will be $20, and guests can upgrade their experience to include special cafe menu items for $35. Those who opt for the meal can choose between a horchata or a paloma and churros or elote. Kahlo-inspired merchandise, including books, prints and wares designed by Mexican artisans, are already available at the DMA’s gift shop.

Frida: Beyond the Myth will run Aug. 18 through Nov. 17 at the Dallas Museum of Art. Guests can access the exhibition at no cost on the first Sunday of every month or purchase tickets on the DMA’s website.