Fridalicious Friday!

This week is Fridalicious! I have Frida on the brain as usual (My other obsessions are Marilyn Monroe, mermaids and art supplies.) but lots of Frida things are happening at the moment, so I thought I would gather them all up in this post.

WHY FRIDA?

After studying Frida is depth for my online Frida-inspried workshop, I am wearing bright colors and flowers in my hair as a daily tribute to my art-hero. It feels good to be out of black! Although I share none of Frida’s pain (or obsession for a notorious womaniser) Frida and I share quite a lot.  We are artists, we swear, and have an earthy sense of humour. We share a cosmically aligned birthday  (she altered her birthdate to time it with the Mexican Revolution!), we both share a love of journaling, dolls,  and teaching ( her students referred to themselves as Los Fridos.I wonder if I could get my student to call them selves Los Jane-ohs?).

STUDYING UNDER THE MASTERS

My lesson about Frida Kahlo is the feature of ‘Studying Under the Masters’ this week. ( Click here to join.)  Creating my artwork for the workshop  was a joy, but very challenging. For this collaborative workshop each participating artist aims to re-create an artwork from their selected ‘Master’. It was HARD! But slipping on Frida’s shoes, flowers and color has changed me forever. We then used our ‘Masters’ inspiration to create our own work. I created the coolest journal in the world. I don’t mind telling you that lol! It’s full of Frida and her amazing spirit – so of course I think it is the coolest thing ever!

I started filming the workshop in my studio at ‘The Nest’ and finished it when I was in Bali. I was meant to be relaxing before and after my Escape Artist retreat ( which was wonderful!), but instead I was a whirling flurry of paint and Fridas!

My Workshop has inspired some awesome Frida Kahlo paintings… My love for Frida is shared by many!
Just in case you don’t know who I am talking about, check out  ‘Frida’, the movie with Selma Hayek. Frida Kahlo is not only one of my favourite artists, but fills me with inspiration and emotion. I am making a pilgrimage to her house in Mexico City next April as the highlight of my ‘Viva Frida’ workshop. That workshop is full, but I’m sure once won’t be enough, so just come along next time ok?

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FRIDA KOAHLO

Last year, one of the Koalas that visits my garden had to be rescued ( you can read the story and the meaning behind the funny koala pic here). I named her Frida Koahlo. Even though she could not be saved, which still makes me tear up, because of her, I become involved in supporting the wonderful ‘Friends of the Koala’. They rescue, rehabilitate and research these endangered animals in my local area.
My dear friend, Diana Rast, is a wildly talented glass artist based in Florida, known as Dizzy Bead, and she was so touched by the plight of these cute animals that she created a series of memorial ‘Frida Koahlo’ in GLASS. She has very kindly donated this Limited Edition Collection to raise funds for koala rescue.

Click here to make your donation!

FRIDA INSPIRED ART

I find it too difficult to separate Frida from her Art.  Frida was art. That is how she inspires me anyway. But her magic is that she inspires everyone in a different way.

‘Little Frida’ – This is my latest Frida print. My Society 6 Store has free international postage and $5 off per item until November 9th.

Click here for the special offer And there is one more Frida to come next week…. as part of a special Blog post with Cloth Paper Scissors next Monday…. I’ll let you know when that is up on their site…. this is a sneak peek:

These are the Frida Books I recommended in my class! Click the image to go straight to Amazon!

This is her Art Journal:

This one is about Frida as an artist.

This book is about Frida’s life.

The Frida movie featuring Salma Hayek is a favourite:

For a bit of fun: