Socialist Worker Socialist Worker  The passion and the politics
of Frida Kahlo  Megan Trudell reviews a new exhibition of works
by the celebrated Mexican artist  Kahlo’s The Two Fridas shows
herself split into two parts — one in European dress, another in
native Indian dress (Pic: HSBC/Mexico Tourist Board)   Frida
Kahlo is an icon who is arguably more famous for her image than
for her work. Her paintings sell for millions—celebrity fans
include Madonna and Salma Hayek. She is hailed as a feminist
artist, a deeply personal painter of women’s experience.  It is
not hard to see why. She was an independent woman who endured
great physical pain as a result of a horrific accident and
traumatic emotional betrayals. For years she and her work were
overshadowed by her relationship with Mexican artist Diego
Rivera—yet she has emerged as a celebrated artist in her own
right.  There is much in Kahlo’s work that articulates and rages
at oppression, often graphically portraying her own considerable
physical and emotional