Frida Kahlo Part 2: El Elefante y la Paloma

In part two of our series on Frida Kahlo, we discuss the aftermath of one of Frida's greatest tragedies that would ultimately leave Frida in pieces. With dozens of shattered bones and an iron bar piercing her abdomen, Frida would spend the next two years evading death. As she recovered, her novio, Alejandro, slowly disappeared from her life, and Frida would find new meaning through painting. During this time, she created some of her first portrait works while mummified in a plaster corset to realign her spine. When she “recovered,” Frida reunited with the Cachuchas to support La Raza Cósmica through José Vasconcelos’ campaign. He would lose the election, but it gave Frida the opportunity to join the Communist Party, and there she would meet the world-famous muralist (and womanizer) Diego Rivera. Despite a 20-year age gap, the two would fall in love, and wedding bells were soon heard in the distance. Everyone had an opinion on the slovenly painter’s new fling, and Frida’s own mother called it “a marriage between an elephant and a dove.” Tune in to part two of Frida Kahlo to learn more! (Ep. 072)