nd wife, Matilde, who was his co-worker in a jewelry store, gave birth to four daughters of whom Frida was the third born, and her father=s favorite (Garza 22-23).
The family suffered economically as a result of reforms of the 1910 revolution, but they were able to remain in their ABlue House,@ the place of Frida=s birth and death, in suburban Mexico City. In 1913, six-year old Frida contracted polio and Awhen she recovered her right leg was shorter and thinner than the left and she walked with a pronounced limp. The child who had once been a joyous tomboy became thin, sad and withdrawn@ (Garza 25). Polio marked the beginning of a remarkable series of health problems.
A street car accident at the age of 18 left Frida seriously injured. Her spine, pelvis, collarbone, ribs and right leg and foot were broken, and she underwent several surgeries. She described her ordeal as Areal torture@ and wrote that she had to be in a hard cast for three or four months and Aif I don=t get relief, I would sincerely like to die@ (Cruz 7). At the age of 25, severe internal bleeding caused her to be re-hospitalized and she underwent spinal surgery at age 39, and hospitalization four years later for recurring spinal problems. Three years later, her right leg had to be amputated when gangrene set in, and that same year she contracted bronchial pneumonia; it was 1954, the year of her death. In addition to these extreme physical problems, she suffered on a daily basis from various chronic pains associated with her accidents and diseases. Compounding her physical problems, Kahlo suffered emotionally and psychologically from her life-long turbulent relationship with Diego Rivera.
Instead of resigning herself to her excessive physical and emotional difficulties, Kahlo adopted a compelling stoicism which found its way into her art. The bulk of her paintings are self-portraits, and the expression on those portraits is uniformly stoic, self-contain...