Mexico City is already the ultimate pilgrimage destination for fans of Frida Kahlo’s raw, thought-provoking and world-famous paintings, but a brand-new venue dedicated to this legendary artist is set to open in the city in the autumn.
Casa Roja, which is scheduled to open on September 27, will house the brand-new Museo Casa Kahlo, located in the Mexican capital’s Coyoacán area, not too far from Casa Azul. While the latter is Kahlo’s birthplace and opened as a museum way back in 1958 through a trust established by her husband and artist Diego Rivera, Museo Casa Kahlo is the first institution to be run by descendants of the iconic Mexican painter.
The property used to belong to her parents and then to her younger sister, Cristina. It has remained in the family for decades, and Kahlo’s grandniece, Mara Romeo Kahlo, has allowed researchers and public figures such as Salma Hayek into the house’s archive. This is the first time it will open as a public museum.
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So, what can we expect? Well, Museo Casa Kahlo will incorporate Kahlo’s dolls, clothing, jewellery, personal letters, photographs and lots of other objects and documents to provide visitors with an up-close and personal insight into the artists’ childhood.
The photography of Kahlo’s father, Guillermo, will also be on display, and the museum will include space for rotating exhibitions showcasing artwork by Mexican, Latin American and women artists.
Adán García Fajardo, the Museum of Memory and Tolerance’s current academic director, will lead Museo Casa Kahlo and it will be overseen by the newly-founded Fundación Kahlo, a New York-based non-profit.
‘This is a dream long held by our family,’ Mara Romeo Kahlo said in a statement, according to The Art Newspaper. ‘Frida’s legacy belongs to the world, but it begins here – on this land, in these homes and in the culture that shaped her.’
Elsewhere in Coyoacán, you’ll find street murals and life-size bronze statues of Frida Kahlo, so make sure you venture past some of those on your way to the museums. Oh, and have a look at the very best things to do in Mexico City.
Did you see that Paris is getting a huge new art museum this year?
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