32: Violeta Parra, the next Frida Kahlo?
This month, we dive into singer-songwriter, composer, poet, folklorist and artist Violeta Parra’s (1917-1967) multifaceted legacy with her biographer, Ericka Verba.
You can find Ericka’s book, “Thanks to Life” on her website: www.erickaverba.com as well as more Violeta Parra resources.
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1964 hand-stitched flyer by Violeta Parra promoting her solo exhibition at the Louvre.
Her artistic journey has many parallels to Frida Kahlo’s: both artists began painting while bedridden; drew from their personal experience with the folk arts of their country, Frida in Mexico and Violeta in Chile.
They both lived and worked during a time when their respective countries were at a crossroads and made it their mission to capture the folk culture of their countries:
Frida with a paint brush and Violeta through song, poem, painting and arpilleras (embroidery).
And while most of us have only heard of Frida Kahlo, both artists achieved international fame in their lifetime and their legacies continue to this day.
More recently, Violeta Parra’s arpilleras were featured in the 2022 Venice Biennale “Milk of Dreams” which also featured some Art Slice favorites like Leonora Carrington, Remedios Varo and Dorothea Tanning, to name a few.
Violeta Parra’s arpilleras installed at the 2022 Venice Biennale.
More of Violeta’s arpilleras:
Violeta Parra, “La Brujita” c. 1965.
Violeta Parra, “The Worker’s Strike,” embroidery on burlap. Life size.
Violeta Parra, “Tree of Life”, embroidery on burlap.
While she was putting her own twist on this traditional folk medium during her lifetime, arpilleras took on a much different meaning under the brutal, US-backed Pinochet dictatorship several years (1973-1990) after her sudden death (suicide) in 1967:
Anonymous, “Work, Justice, and Freedom”, n.d., Embroidered textile, 13 ¾ x 17 ½ inches.
They became a protest symbol and tool of resistance against the regime for Chilean women, as well as a way for them to grieve their disappeared loved ones.
But before arpilleras, Violeta had become internationally known for her music. When she began her artistic career, she started with painting.
Violeta Parra, “The Black Wedding”.
Violeta Parra, “Carmen Luisa” oil on canvas, 1964.
Her paintings explore deep emotions and personal experiences. The planes of color and vague interiors really mind us of Richard Diebenkorn and Florine Stettheimer.
Richard Diebenkorn, “Coffee”, oil on canvas, 1959.
Florine Stettheimer, “Heat,” oil on canvas, 1919.
