This past Saturday my wife and I went to the Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo exhibit at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Like everyone else, I visit the Diego Rivera court every time I am at the DIA. However, this was the first time I had seen any originals of Kalho's work.
Diego's commission by Wilhelm Valentiner to do the Detroit Industry Murals was funded by Edsel Ford. It is a masterpiece. Don't visit Detroit without seeing it.
Here is one wall:
Frida was pregnant and had a miscarriage at Henry Ford Hospital while they were there. She did this piece, Henry Ford Hospital at the time, which was on display:
These were painted in 1932. Frida and Diego were communists, funded by a capitalist in Detroit, in the midst of the Great Depression. He was at the pinnacle of his career, and she was at the outset of hers.
It was powerfully clear from the exhibit that these were two people, living an electric moment of their lives.
The exhibit was an inspiring and rare thing to see.