#HAWMC Day 16: Pinterest Board

Hipster Alice’s Pinterest Board #HAWMC Day 16

Create a pinterest board for your health focus. Pin 3 things. What did you pin? Share the images in a post and explain why you chose them.


Ok, for this prompt, some improvisation was required. I do not have, nor am I pinterested (see what I did there? Yes, I’m a genius, I know! ) in creating a pinterest account. I have always been drawn (no pun intended) towards Frida Kahlo. She was such an amazing human being, who despite (or because of) her suffering, was able to make such touching works of art. I don’t remember when I first “discovered” Frida and her artwork, but what I do know is that the moment I saw her art I immediately felt the pain and vulnerability which she conveyed so well in all her pieces. During my last year in college I took a trip to Mexico City and had the honor of visiting Frida’s hometown, Coyoacan. I went to her house, “La Casa Azul” which is now a museum. While there, it was surreal, because her presence could be felt, everywhere. I even get goosebumps as I remember the experience of being in her home, walking through her bedroom, seeing her bed, where she painted. It was as if I was intruding on her and I half expected her to walk through at any minute. The most haunting memory I have from that visit is a room in which her easel is kept. Her wheelchair is right in front of it. *gets goosebumps again* I have never had the experience of “seeing” and or “feeling” the presence of a ghost. Yet that day, I definitely felt Frida’s presence.


Although I could find SO many incredible pieces of art that I love, the following that I’ve chosen are those which I most relate to my health focus (Crohn’s, depression, Chronic Illness).




The first “pin” is an actual picture of the artist at work. One of my favorite Frida quotes is: “I paint my own reality. The only thing I know is that I paint because I need to, and I paint whatever passes through my head without any other consideration.” And here she is shown, painting on her cast while holding a mirror so as to see her reflection, because she painted herself. This quote and picture speak to me and serve as an inspiration for my blogging because that is how I write. I allow my words to flow, in a stream of consciousness, which is MY reality. I don’t censor my thoughts or emotions, much like the way in which Frida painted. (NOT that I think I am ANYWHERE near as talented as she was!)




The second “pin” I’ve chosen is her painting, “Without Hope” (1945) on which Frida inscribed ” A mi no me queda ya ni la menor esperanza… Todo se mueve al compas de lo que encierra la pansa.” (” Not the least hope remains for me…everything moves in step with what’s in the belly.”) In this painting, Frida depicts a lack of appetite following several surgeries, which led to her being prescribed a “force fed diet”. When I initially looked at this painting, I immediately identified. I see myself in that bed. After all, during my hospitalization and recovery from surgery, I spent 4 months in bed, during which time, I too was “force-fed” via tube feedings. But what strikes me when I look at that painting is the feeling that I’m being swallowed alive, by my depression, by my Crohn’s. Feeling hopeless, out of control, under the mercy of this horrible monster which has overtaken my life. This painting is a perfect rendition of that.




The third “pin” is one of my favorite paintings and also one that is relevant to the theme which I’ve found running through my blog/posts for HAWMC. I have written not only about feeling hope but also transformation. Thus, a perfect depiction is that which is found in “The Two Fridas” (1939). It is believed to be a painting depicting her deep hurt at losing her husband. One Frida sits on the left of the painting; this is the Frida that was rejected by Rivera, Her blouse is ripped open, exposing her broken and bleeding heart. The Frida to the right, the one that Rivera still loves, has a heart that is still whole. She holds a small portrait of Rivera in her hand. While this has nothing to do directly with MY health focus, I have a different interpretation (which, isn’t that what art is about? open to interpretation?). To me it is symbolic of loss, grief, and transformation. I apply it to myself as I “lost” a part of myself when I became gravely ill and required surgery back in 2010. I lost the life I had because of the hospitalization and surgery. I feel like there are two Kats (the Kat I was before surgery, and the Kat I am becoming) and the artery (which is me now). I am still in the process of grieving who I was and the life I led. Yet I am also in the process of transformation. Of making peace with what I lost and moving on, of healing. After all, in the painting, there is a connection between the two Fridas: the artery which flows between the hearts, thus representative of the flow of life. It goes on.









@hipsteraliceApril
Blogger in Residency
Alice in Crohnsland for

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