This summer, the most comprehensive Frida Kahlo exhibit in the past 40 years is coming to Chicago. Originally scheduled to take place last year, the exhibition was postponed due to the pandemic but will go ahead this summer at the Cleve Carney Museum of Art and the McAninch Arts Center in Glen Ellyn, Illinois,
Opening June 5 and running through September 6, Frida Kahlo: Timeless will feature 26 of the artist’s original pieces – oil paintings and works on paper on loan from the Museo Dolores Olmedo in Mexico City – along with a multimedia timeline with reproductions of her clothing, photos from her life, and a poetry garden designed to channel her life and work. A series of webinars have already begun on the museum's website for people who can't attend in person, with seminars that offer insight on Kahlo's work and influence.
“The work in this collection maps the arc of Frida Kahlo’s exceptional life and career,” Cleve Carney Museum of Art director and curator Justin Witte said in a press release. “Kahlo and her work were so interconnected that it is impossible to separate one from the other. That is also why her presence is still strongly felt in every piece in this exhibition.”
The Chicago Tribune reports that the museum has been redesigned with the pandemic in mind. The layout runs on a "one-direction flow" so guests don't cross each other. The space has floor markings, and masks and hand sanitizers "will be plentiful". The exhibition has already sold 14,000 advance tickets and an additional 100,000 are expected to be snapped up. “Right now we will have less people per hour in the space. If necessary, we’re prepared to extend hours,” Witte said.
Tickets for Frida Kahlo: Timeless are now on sale. Timed-entry tickets are $18, and untimed entry tickets are $35. For more information, visit theccma.org.
This article was first published on March 11, 2020 and updated on February 1, 2021.
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