“Blue House No. 2” by Joyce Byrum. (Photo courtesy of Les Overlock)

Art Review by Les Overlock
Special to the Herald

“The World of Frida” combines juried and invitational shows with a national photography exhibit at the Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek. Art and photographs celebrating the life, style and legacy of the famous Mexican artist Frida Kahlo runs through Sept. 16.

I attended the opening a few weeks back, and the massive crowd made it impossible to view the art in a peaceful climate.  My original thought was that there was total overkill of her image being portrayed in a variety of moods and expressions and few really succeeded at capturing what seems to be the essence of the icon.

There were collages and dolls and montages and sketches and lighted frames and a whole cacophony of wild Frida interpretations.  One constant theme was a look at her frailties physically portrayed by a variety of bone collections collages and montages.  Diego Rivera seems to take a backseat to monkeys and other idiosyncrasies of her persona.

My wife, Joyce Byrum had entered two sets of small porcelain statues of the couple and both sold.  This gave totally credibility to her craftsmanship and creativity.  Joyce also did a replica of Frida’s home in Mexico City which duplicates her “Blue House” in Mexico City. Her work is on display at the HQ Gallery in Benicia.

Following is a list of endeavors which stood out in my mind as being very authentic and pleasing to the eye.  There is another hitch which elevated some pieces and that was humor entwined with interesting quips.  I interviewed a number of artist who by and large were from varied hippie backgrounds originating in their arrival in California in the 1960s.  Frida brought out the best of this feminine energy which overall captivated her spirit of overcoming a variety of mental and physical demons.  Frida, as an icon in a feminine mystique, grew into a cultist tornado.  Frida destroyed archetypes along the way.  Diego got lost in the sandstorm.

The Bedford Gallery is located at 1601 Civic Drive in Walnut Creek. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays.

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