In this art quilt series I will continue to explore the passage of time using the 25 ton Aztec calendar and Frida Kahlo’s life journey. 

This piece is inspired by her painting “The Two Fridas”.  It shows two versions of Frida sitting side by side. The Frida on the left wears the white Victorian style wedding dress. Her heart is torn open and a blood vessel bleeds onto her dress representing the pain of being rejected by Diego. She uses surgical forceps to try to stop the bleeding.(the past, the pain of divorce) 

The Frida on the right wears the colorful traditional Tehuacán dress. Her heart is whole and healthy, showing the side of her that Diego loved best. She also holds a small childhood portrait of her ex husband Diego Rivera, (the present, the Frida loved by Diego). 

An exposed red artery connects the hearts of both Fridas and her paintings. Even though one side is wounded and bleeding, the two figures hold hands. This shows her survival, unity and self acceptance through deep emotional pain. I placed the Aztec calendar representing time as a sun/moon split in half behind them.  The left side represents the moon (Frida) and the right side represents the sun/day (Diego).

Materials: commercial fabrics, Aztec sun photo transferred on organza, paintings photo transferred on cotton, red ribbon, tulle as a shadow, raw edge appliqué, butterflies representing rebirth, transformation and cultural roots, free motion quilting, hand stitched yute and DMC embroidery floss