Frida and Fertility

I’m going to go out on limb here (pun intended) and say that odds are the Frida in this painting has quite a stomachache. Nature is present in most of Kahlo’s work, from merely serving as a backdrop to being the central focus growing from her stomach. This article focuses on the argument that the symbolism of plants is Frida Kahlo’s work has to do with fertility. I think it goes beyond that. The natural aspects in Frida Kahlo’s work demonstrate fertility, but also her inability to go outdoors and her ever-present connection to the circle of life that nature presents.

The author of the blog post re-tells what Hayden Herrera said about Frida’s work. “In Roots…it is Frida who nourishes that land by giving birth to a vine. Curiously, given the painting’s title, the vine has no visible roots. It must, therefore, be rooted in Frida, but Frida, floating just above a barren landscape and painted in a much large scale, is rootless, as in a dream.” Due to the rather obvious plant growing out of Frida’s stomach, I can’t argue with the claim that Frida is, in a sense, giving birth to a vine. Contrarily, I would like to add to this claim as to explain to the reader why Frida would use nature to demonstrate such a topic as fertility.

Due to an accident at the beginning of her life, Frida was unable to have children. Some sources say she was barren, others say that she would miscarry or get an abortion. Regardless of the reason, fertility was a central aspect in many of her paintings because Frida painted about what she knew: her own personal problems. Another result of Frida’s accident was that she would often be bedridden and unable to go outdoors for days or weeks at a time. This explains why she would always incorporate nature into her work; it gave her a connection to an experience that was unattainable, much like having children.

Frida’s fascination with nature also ties back into her fascination with the circle of life, hence the fertility aspect of the quote by Herrera. She loved the interconnectedness of all beings, the unity between plants and animals, humans and the earth. This is why in her picture “Roots” she has plant stems growing out of her, which “expresses Kahlo’s desire for fertility and to be a part of the life cycle.”

Mexico is a fertile, beautiful, colorful land that is filled with flowers and plants. Frida had a connection to her homeland that was both literally and figuratively demonstrated in much of her work. This painting could also be a representation of that connection to Mexico specifically, the place where she is comfortable and feels at one with the earth, as shown in this painting.

People can surmise hundreds of interpretations about Frida Kahlo’s work, but one thing is for sure, she painted about what she knew best: her own personal feelings and problems. Nature was an ever-present motif that represented these varying sentiments felt by Kahlo herself.