El Paso Museum of Art reopens with ‘Frida Kahlo —Sus Fotos’ exhibit, more local artists

For all the art enthusiasts, the El Paso Museum of Art opened up new exhibits for their grand reopening on Feb. 14.

"Frida Kahlo — Sus Fotos" is a traveling exhibit from Museo Frida Kahlo in Mexico City, and is now here in El Paso, but not for a long time.

ABC-7 got a preview of the exhibits before the opening, but filming was not allowed in the "Frida Kahlo — Sus Fotos" exhibit.

An interactive room showed what she'd have in her home, the vibrancy, and how she painted her iconic self-portraits in bed due to her disability.

The exhibit has more than 200 photographs she collected throughout her life from her childhood, her relationship with her husband Diego Rivera, her lovers, family, other artists and notorious public figures at the time.

"This is incredible exhibition to have at the museum, Frida is one of the most iconic artists of the 20th century — she's intergenerational," says EPMA senior curator Michael Reyes. "I think she can be recognized from the youngest of children to the oldest of adults. So this is really exciting to have families come in and view this work together and see iconography that we see every day and relate to it in their own personal way."

Another new exhibit is by Suzi Davidoff, an artist with 30 plus years of practice.

Her exhibit "Wander" showcases her travels with about 100 individual pieces, displaying local and international flora and fauna. 

But it's not just paint she uses, Davidoff collects dirt and other pigments from her hikes and travels to create a mixed media artwork.

Desert Rinpa is another gallery by Mitsumasa Overstreet, who's another local artist incorporating southwest desert flora we see on the daily, but with a Japanese twist based on his heritage.

The museum curator is excited for the community to experience it all.

"It's kind of amazing to see what flora and fauna that we can recognize in this," says Reyes. "I think a lot of families will find it enjoyable to see things that they can connect to. And it's also incredibly relaxing, I think individuals will come into the gallery and feel a sense of calm, almost like they're on a hike themselves."

The exhibits will remain open until May 17, and the museum always provides free entry.