Frida Kahlo

What if you could paint your feelings? Frida Kahlo did exactly that. Born in 1907, she was a 20th-century Mexican painter famous for her self-portraits. Her paintings are full of bright color, strange symbols, and a brave honesty that makes people stop and look.

Her most important idea was painting herself to tell the truth. At 18 she had a terrible bus crash that injured her for life. While recovering, she painted from a mirror to understand pain and who she was. The faces she painted — with a strong unibrow, flowers, animals, and thorns — show feelings and stories.

Frida made about 200 paintings, many of them self-portraits. One famous painting, The Two Fridas, shows two sides of her holding hands and sharing a heart. She mixed Mexican folk art with personal symbols so her pictures felt like tiny worlds where everyone could learn about her life.

Her art changed how people think about being different, about pain, and about being honest. Today her house Casa Azul in Mexico City is a museum and people all over the world wear her image on posters and shirts. Frida teaches us to be brave with our feelings. What would you paint to tell your story?