“Frida” Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) was an internationally popular Mexican painter. She used vibrant colors in her paintings that often dipicted the indigenous cultures of Mexico but most of her works were self-portraits. I am intrigued with Frida Kahlo for many reasons. Obviously, I relate to her in that she was a female Hispanic artist, but also because she embraced the naturalness of her body, allowing her facial hair to be what it was. I love her use of color and adornment in her work as well as in her personal dress. She married Mexican muralist Diego Rivera but was enable to have children due to an accident in her youth that left her in chronic pain. She surrounded herself with birds and other animals, especially monkeys. I believe she loved them and nurtured them as a mother might. About the Artist I have been drawing for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I was surrounded by art. The paintings that hung on our walls were that of my father and grandfather. Their subjects were invariably the people and landscapes of the beautiful state of New Mexico where I was born and raised. I have also had the great privilege of growing up in a huge, beautiful extended family. My paintings come from my cherished memories of growing up in New Mexico and a heart full of love for my Hispanic heritage.