Frida Potayta

An original painting by Alexis Bannerman 2022.

Available as framed print in various sizes and price ranges, from postcard sized frames to museum quality limited prints!

About 'Frida Potayta', by Alexis

Frida Potayta is after a 1940 painting by Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird (Autorretrato con Collar de Espinas). 

I wanted to honour Frida and emulate her work. My favourite way to learn about an artist is to replicate their work, but I am not satisfied with a simple study, I have to also make it my own. Her self portraits are very serious, and whilst I am passionate about art, a part of me is humour and loves vivacity, and I want to celebrate the Now as well as the Past. So it is essential I put my favourite characters into this work.

In the original work by Frida, the hummingbird pendant may be interpreted as a symbol of Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec god of war.^[1] Meanwhile, the black panther is symbolic of bad luck and death, and the monkey (who was tugging at thorns) is a symbol of evil, or possibly her harsh break up with her husband, who had given her a monkey as a present^[2] 

In my version, the panther is replaced by our Cat Tintin, (who sometimes acts like a Panther if he is not fed on time!) and the Monkey is cheekily opening a bag of Tayto crisps to munch on. This is much to the horror of Mr Potato, the central character, who is indeed a crisp.

References:

• 1. Baddeley, Oriana. "'Her Dress Hangs Here: De-Frocking the Kahlo Cult." Oxford Art Journal 14, no. 1 (1991), pg. 13
• 2. Fuentes, Carlos and Frida Kahlo. The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait. New York: Bloomsbury, 1995, pg. 78

 Our museum quality prints are:

 -Hand signed and titled by the artist Alexis Bannerman.

- Framed with solid wood, sizes medium and above are made with uv proof, shatterproof glass, safe for the family home. The frames are Irish made.

-The prints are printed and mounted by Chloe in our Kinsale studio.

-We print with Giclée ink (that lasts up to 200 years, 70 years in direct sunlight), using only museum grade, archive paper.