‘Frida Kahlo: Through the Lens of Nickolas Muray’ Opens Jan. 10 at Foosaner Art Museum
MELBOURNE, FLA. —Frida Kahlo: Through the Lens of Nickolas Muray, will run Jan. 10 through March 22, 2015, at Florida Institute of Technology’s Foosaner Art Museum. This unique and powerful exhibition of more than three dozen photographic portraits of Kahlo provides an intimate look at Mexico’s most prolific and well-known female artist.
In May 1931, Muray (1892-1965) traveled to Mexico on vacation, where he met Kahlo (1907-1954). The two started a romance that continued on and off for the next 10 years and a friendship that lasted until Kahlo’s death.
The exhibition photographs, dating from 1937 to 1946, explore Muray’s unique perspective as Kahlo’s friend, lover and confidant. Muray’s photographs bring to light Kahlo’s deep interest in her Mexican heritage, her life and the people with whom she shared close friendships.
Born in Hungary, Muray became a successful New York fashion and commercial photographer known for his portraits of celebrities, politicians, socialites and artists. Having experimented with color in his work from early on, he found his most colorful model in Kahlo. Muray was a prolific photographer and he photographed Kahlo more than any of his other subjects.
Kahlo was born on July 6, 1907, in Coyocoán, Mexico City, Mexico. Now considered one of Mexico’s greatest artists, she began painting after she was severely injured in a bus accident. Kahlo later became politically active and married fellow communist artist Diego Rivera in 1929. She exhibited her paintings in Paris and Mexico before her death in 1954.
This traveling exhibition has been organized by the Nickolas Muray Photo Archives and is circulated through GuestCurator Traveling Exhibitions.
Family Highlights
For families considering a visit to this exhibit, there are a few special attractions.
During the run of the exhibition, there will be a gallery devoted to hands-on activities for children of all ages called La Casa Azul (Blue House). The activities will reinforce artistic concepts found in the exhibition such as self-portraiture and ethnic identity, and the gallery will feature a custom-built photo booth where visitors can take a self-portrait in a structure that mimics Kahlo’s beloved Blue House.
And the opening day of the exhibit, Saturday, Jan. 10, the museum will host Frida Family Day. This day-long museum festival will be filled with family oriented activities including music, storytelling and numerous hands-on art projects related to the exhibition.
The Foosaner Art Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (the museum stays open until 7 p.m. Thursday); and Sunday, 1-5 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for seniors, children and students with I.D. Museum members and Florida Tech faculty, staff and students are free with I.D. Thursdays offer free admission all day. Phone number is (321) 674-8916 or visit foosanerartmuseum.org for more information.
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