July will be a buzz of cultural activity in Mexico in honour of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, born 100 years ago this month. The activities planned for this occasion, the majority of which will feature artists from the Philippines, are associated with the Cervantes Institute of Manila. The celebrations were kicked off in the opening ceremony “Queremos tanto a Frida” (“We love Frida so much”) on July 6th, on what would have been Kahlo's 100th birthday.

Magdalena del Carmen Frida Kahlo Calderón, the third daughter of German Guillermo Kahlo and Mexican Matilde Calderón, was born in Coyoacan, south of Mexico City, on July 6th 1907. Unique and somewhat peculiar, she was a women of great independence and style, and was an open critic of her society's morals and social schema. Proud of her nationality, she bravely stood up to the Americanisation of her country and was ready to fight at any moment.

Her life was marked especially by illness and suffering. In 1914, at six years old, she came down with polio, the disease that attacks the nervous system; from then on she lived her life in considerable pain, having countless operations and related illnesses.

After her studies at the National Preparatory School (Escuela Nacional Preparatoria) in Mexico City, where she took classes by renowned academic Fernando Fernández Domínguez, she was involved in a collision with a bus, leaving her bedridden for a long time. This was what inspired her in her self-portraits, in which she illustrated her feelings, emotions and experiences.

After her recovery, Kahlo married Diego Rivera, a well-known Mexican muralist, and together with her husband she embarked on her career as an artist. Through her work she toured the United States (including New York and Detroit) and Paris, gaining immense international fame.

Kahlo died in 1954 in Coyoacan.

Many of the world's leading artists will gather for this special event in honour of her life, among which include writers Jessica Zafra and Marjorie Evasco, sculptor Julie Lluch, director Ellen Ramos, fine artists Wawi Navarroza y Stephanie Pallallos, and dancer and choreographer Myra Beltrán.

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