The life of the beloved Mexican artist Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) is as dramatic and extraordinary as any television show and will soon be the plot of one, reports the Variety. The artist's estate, together with BTF Media, based in Miami, is producing a television series based on the life and work ofFrida Kahlo. The goal is "to present a unique perspective based on what her family knows about her and show how she really lived her life”, said the great-niece of the painter, Mara Romeo Kahlo.The life of the self-taught painter was marked by physical and psychological pain, which she channeled into her self-portraits. The Mexican artist contracted polio as a child and, at the age of 18, had an accident that had repercussions throughout her life. The internal injuries ofFrida Kahlo were so severe that she was forced to have a full-body cast. The marriage, divorce and subsequent remarriage ofFrida Kahlo with Mexican artist Diego Rivera, as well as the two artists' fervent political activism, helped cement the couple as iconoclasts. Frida in particular, with her distinctive style and striking features, has become an internationally beloved figure who has inspired lines of Barbie dolls, clothing, accessories, emojis, stamps and more!
The artist's life has been explored by various creative representations in the past, including the films Frida, living nature (1983), Frida Kahlo: A Ribbon Around a Bomb (1992), a documentary series, and the Academy Award-winning biopic, frida (2002), with Salma Hayek, which was based on the 1983 biography by Hayden Herrera. No further details are available regarding the upcoming release from BTF, which has produced several series of Spanish-language dramatic biopics, including Until I met you , revealing the rise to fame of the “Divo de Juarez”, Juan Gabriel; el caesar, about Mexican boxing legend Julio César Chavez; It is Selena's secret, about the tragic murder of Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla.
“Frida was known for her colorful self-portraits. Her self-portraits had different themes, such as her identity, her human body, and death. She was considered a hero to many because she did not allow society to get to her”, said Ricardo Coeto, co-founder of BTF Media, in a statement. “Instead, she used her struggles as her strength.” Last year, more than six decades after her death, Kahlo's self-portrait, Diego and yo (1949) became the most expensive work of Latin American art ever sold at auction – tripling the previous record of $9.8 million to The Rivals (1931) by none other than his partner, Diego Rivera.