On September 7, 2019 from 7-10pm, the Bridgeport Arts Center, 3rd Floor Gallery (1200 W. 35th St, Chicago, IL) opens the Tres Fridas exhibition and runs thru September 22nd. The project is a collaboration between Reveca Torres, Mariam Paré and Tara Ahern, three disabled Chicago artists. Reveca Torres and Mariam Pare, two artists paralyzed by a spinal cord injury, met online and bonded through art, injury and a deep connection to Frida Kahlo. Soon after, they decided to recreate Frida Kahlo’s evocative painting ‘Dos Fridas’ using photography, digital editing, making their own costumes and inserting themselves in the image sitting in their wheelchairs. Photographer and disability advocate, Tara Ahern, connected to the project through her own experience as a woman with muscular dystrophy and scoliosis as well as a shared love of Frida.
The women often discussed their experience as people with disabilities and how they could utilize their individual experiences and artistic talents to produce and innovate thought-provoking art.The Tres Fridas collection includes recreations of Dos Fridas, Mona Lisa, Rosie the Riveter, The Last Supper, Whistler’s Mother, Old Guitarist, Christina’s World and more, all with the subjects being people with disabilities. The exhibit highlights the lived experiences of people with disability, starts conversations, and challenges viewers to think differently.
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