The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait

i do not feel this is a good translation of her diaries and i also feel that a lot of artistic license was taken by the author. i honestly don't feel this should have been made so available to the general public in the form that it takes. the translation from spanish to english, is at times, poor. And, the "interpretations" of what the artist "meant" when she said or wrote certain things takes great license and assumes that the author had a microscope into the brain of kahlo. She was a complex women who was in a lot of pain towards the end and this diary reflects that, as well as how much medication she was on. i feel that it's just an all around inappropriate and inconsiderate translation of her last works.

Perfect, i highly recoomend this book. I read it b years ago amd bought it here for a great price. If you love frida, you will love her diary. Studying her photos in her journal gave me alot of information and perspectivw on her spiritual amd life experiences. I found frida at the lowest point of my life, bedbound and very sick. She gave me hope while identifying her pain thru her paintings. An absolure must. I finally did my frida art piece based on her paintings and journal.
(Not 4 sale, it goes to charity. )

Absolutely loved this!! I got this for my best friends birthday because she loves Frida Kahlo! It is so good and I’m glad I got a copy for my self as well. Highly recommend this if your a fan of Frida or like art in general.

It was enlightening to read Frida's diary. In addition to being a brilliant painter, her writing is poetic. Free form wanderings, eulogies for departed friends, political views, intimate musings of her life are all in this most revealing diary. Doodles are in pen, crayons, ink blots are worked into her sketches. This poor woman endured over 35 surgeries all stemming from the excruciating injuries suffered in the tragic bus accident. Her frustration, anger and immense sadness is palpable in her entries.

Half of the book is a replica of the original diary. The other half is a translation in English along with a critical interpretation. The English translation also in part-detective in a sense. Most important to Frida is Diego Rivera. For all his cruelty to and loving of Frida, she mirrors the dichotomy of their tempestuous lives together. No matter how much Diego hurt her, she defended him to herself and strongly believed that their souls were one. She also feels that Diego is a child sent to her, and she, the long suffering, loving mother.

If you're interested in the art of Frida and Diego, the long physical suffering Frida endured and their long relationship, this diary is a must.

It is exquisite.

I loved this book! I can't seem to put it down I do have to say that I would recommend it for billingual readers you will get a better understanding of the book. It is translated in english towards the back but, spanish readers will benifit the most out of the book because you will be able to understand Frida's humor about Diego. The first part of the diary is all in spanish and was written by Frida. The 2nd half is the english translation that will show a small replica of her drawings with the english translation. Some words are better left in spanish because the translation in english will not do them justice. Frida expresses her feelings so well that you can't help but feel her burning passion for diego and her lonliness. Frida was an intersting individual and her art is magnificent. She was an artist and a poet. Frida's diary is very morbid to say the least but, I love it. She expressed exactly what she felt at that exact moment. Her explanation to the way she sees each color is fantastic. I have gone through her paintings to see how many times she used the color Yellow. Buy the book to find out what this color means. Her physical pain is obvious and her paintings speak out for them selves. There is no doubt she was madly in love with diego above all. I learned much more about her through this diary. Please buy the Frida movie starring Selma Hayek things will make more sense to you. The author of this book uses every day language to translate her art. It is a must have book, I will definetly read it over and over. The book is absolutely a must have for Frida addicts like myself. I sometimes get lost while I'm reading it because I feel as if I can see and feel what she is describing. I absolutely love Frida and her artwork. Don't hesitate to buy this book it is worth every dollar you spend.

A really interesting and beautiful look into her mind rather than her life. This is a must have for Frida fans.

The introduction was a beautiful glimpse into the beginning of a journey that "The Diary of Frida Kahlo" took me on. One of logic, passion, bits of pain, humor, love and the confusion of which art tries to help us cope with issues we find unbearable to ever comprehend. A daily read for me whether it be if I can only fit in a few minutes of my favorite parts of have the leisure of enjoying the whole body of the book. Love isn't a strong enough word for how much I enjoy it but will have to do, I love it a great deal. Recommend it to anyone looking to mix the beauty of images with the gorgeous mind of a poet as I find most of the journal entries of her's were.

I maybe didn't read the fine print and should have realized it would be in Spanish, but...I didn't and I don't speak Spanish. There is a translation in the back of the book, but that is a pain to be flipping back and forth all the time. I had seen the movie years ago, love diaries of any kind....well any kind I can read, but not this time. Buyer beware and find the small print I think.

Enrique Torres' review is 100% accurate, so I just want to add a few additional comments.

The reproduction of the diary pages is nothing short of amazing - apparently scanned with a high quality scanner, or perhaps photographed digitally or with film and then digitized. The colors of both the writing and the images appear exceptionally accurate - Frida used many different colored pencils in her diary. Even penciled notations look like pencil, ballpoint ink looks like ink, and all pages are printed on high-quality semi-gloss paper.

The second half, which contains the English translations, also contains small black & white reproductions of each page translated and of each image described/explicated. Makes it easy to return to the first half and look at the original full-color page.

CAVEAT & RECOMMENDATION: The book I have is the 2005 hardback ed. published by Harry N. Abrams, Inc. I have not seen nor can I speak of any other published editions. I would buy this edition - the price is more than reasonable and the quality top-notch.

Love this book everything about it's amazing I got fo the plane ride to Mexico City to see Frida house it was perfect for my trip if you love frida bye it