Frida Kahlo’s primary form of artistic expression—the self-portrait—allowed her to use images of her body to comment on her daily experiences as a Mexican of mixed ethnicities, a woman, and an artist. This self-representation became an important act of performance that defined her life. At this performative discussion, Edén Torres, professor of Chicana feminist studies and chair of the Chicano Studies Department at the University of Minnesota, interviews drag queen/University instructor Esmé Rodríguez (a.k.a. T. Kupin) on the staging of gender and identity in her work and in the art and life of Kahlo.
Performing Gender: Identity, Ethnicity, and Sexuality in Frida Kahlo and Onstage
