Hello —
Hope life is going well for you! Life has been moving along here. I've almost gotten Becoming Visible: Frida completed. I've been tweaking on it here & there, and hope to reveal the completed piece soon.
Those on my email list always get first looks & first dibs, so if you're not on it already, you can sign up here, and then keep an eye out for that. I'd like to say it will be by next Friday, the 25th (Which is also my birthday! Yes, it falls on Black Friday this year, but let's not read anything into that lol.) We shall see how things go :-)
For all of you who are starting to try & figure out gift giving ideas this holiday season, I've got some excellent options for you:
- First of all some beautiful 8x10 prints that come already matted & packaged in a gift bag, so literally all you need to do is hand it to that someone special.
- Also available are these luscious poinsettia note cards & gift tags.
- And last but not least, original art under $50, including colorful holiday ornaments.
And of course you can mix & match these to your heart's content ♥♥♥
Deadline for ordering is Monday, 12/12 if you want it to get to you before 12/25.
Now back to Becoming Visible: Frida ...
Last Friday I shared the surprise twist to this newest piece. If you missed it, the twist was to add a mask over those beautiful & intense Frida Kahlo eyes.
The mask is meant to remind us how much richness our lives would lack if Frida Kahlo had remained hidden & invisible, and had not been willing to reveal to us thru her paintings her vulnerablility & the depth of her pain both physical & emotional — and thus the brilliance of her courage & heart.
Many of us who have been inspired by her paintings & her life's story, would be less open-hearted & courageous ourselves without having had the experience of them.
Here's a last look at those incredible eyes and the mask that's soon to cover them.
In 1944 Frida painted one of her most famous paintings (shown below).
In this painting, she depicts herself split down the middle, her spine is shattered like a column. She wears a surgical brace and there are nails all through her body, which emphasize the constant pain she endured from her earlier injuries. It was during this time that she had many surgeries, and actually did wear special corsets to protect her back & spine.
It was as if by painting her struggles & pain, she was able to share a very vulnerable part of herself that she seldom let herself reveal in her life & relationships. Her paintings were an outpouring of her inner world.
And because of this courage to express her vulnerabilities thru her work, many of us have been able to touch our own pain & suffering thru experiencing Frida's.
The Broken Column - 1944
But I am here to tell you, even thru the pain she endured both with her physicality and in her love life, she absolutely lived!!!!!
Extraordinarily. Imperfectly. Genuinely.
But perhaps most of all, forthrightly.
With all the gusto & beauty she had in her, and against all odds — she spent her life becoming Frida.
“At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think we can.” ― Frida Kahlo
This one will be finished soon, and then the big reveal that you will get to see & experience before anyone else. And don't forget to keep an eye out on my Instagram stories for final process videos.
Now go have some fun ... it matters.
With love & affection 💕
P.S. As always, I would love to hear from you!