This Week's Podcast: A Replay: Being Frida at NYBG with Karen Daubmann
Click on the arrow on the bar to listen:
This summer, and continuing until November 1, 2015, there’s an exhibition at The New York Botanical Garden inspired by and celebrating the life and art of the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo who died in 1954.
This blockbuster show is the first to examine Frida Kahlo’s keen appreciation for the beauty and variety of the natural world, as evidenced by her home and garden as well as the complex use of plant imagery in her artwork. This limited six-month engagement features more than a dozen paintings and works on paper. (For example, Kahlo’s portrait of Luther Burbank [below] and still life paintings of fruits from nearly ripe to passed prime.)
The jewel in the crown is in the conservatory. It’s a reimagining of the iconic artist’s famed garden and studio at the Casa Azul, the lifelong home in Mexico City she shared with the controversial painter and muralist, Diego Rivera. 
Perhaps unlike romantic exhibits, for instance the orchid show or Monet’s garden, this one is alive with color from brilliant marigolds, giant elephant ears, sculptural cacti and succulents.
Our guest today is Karen Daubmann, Associate Vice President of Exhibitions and Public Engagement for the Garden. Karen’s going to tell us about the show, one of the most popular ever presented by NYBG.
There are contemporary versions of Kahlo’s unique garments created in paper. There are the paintings and drawings. There are the colorful plantings in the conservatory, look-alike contests and even a trendy taco truck.There are 
musicians-in-residence, reproductions of historical photographs, bilingual signs and poetry throughout the garden.
In her role as Associate Vice President of Exhibitions and Public Engagement, Karen oversees all logistical aspects of the Garden’s burgeoning horticultural exhibition program, including coordinating with designers, museums, art handlers, and associated vendors for the planning and installation of major Conservatory, Gallery and outdoor art exhibitions. For more information and schedule, Frida Kahlo: Art, Garden, Life.
Frida Kahlo, Portrait of Luther Burbank, 1931
Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco, Mexico
© 2015 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Frida Kahlo, Self Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, 1940
Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin
© 2015 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Leave a Reply