Perla Labarthe, General Coordinator of the Frida Kahlo Museum/Casa Azul. Photo © Courtesy of the museum
1.What is your museum about and what is your work there?
The Frida Kahlo Museum, also known as the Casa Azul or Blue House, was Frida Kahlo’s residence for the better part of her life. It presents the environment and objects which inspired her, as well as some of her works.
The Museum also displays important works of folk art, pre-columbine sculpture, photographs, documents, books and furniture which belonged to Frida and Diego. I have the privilege of being General Coordinator of the Museum and leading the teams responsible for conservation, research and communication of this fabulous space.
2.What is the impact on your digital activity? Do you have tips to share with your colleagues?
The digital resources helped us to make our contents available to our visitors even when we were closed. Thanks to our virtual visits, courses, and 360 tour, we can reach people all around the world and continue spreading the legacy of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. We recommend not to be afraid of all the digital resources available, they can be your best ally if you use them wisely.
3.What advice would you give a visitor to fully discover your museum?
We have educational resources in the museum’s gallery. Guided tours and dramatized visits that are also available. Visitors can complement their visit by accessing our website and downloading documents that can help them better understand the intimate world of Frida Kahlo.
We recommend making documents and special material available to your visitors so they can be curious and help them better understand your collections and contents.
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Bob Schalkwijk
4.What are the future projects of your museum?
We have projects planned in four main areas. First, improving our public’s experience by offering a meaningful visit with an emphasis in inclusion and accessibility. Regarding our digital activity, this year we will be launching our new website with new tools to learn more about Frida and her legacy.
Furthermore, we are exploring new lines of research into the Casa Azul and our collections in order to learn more about the fascinating objects that Frida and Diego gathered and are now under our roof. Finally, we will continue to undertake conservation projects for the objects and the building so we may all enjoy them for many years to come.
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Miguel Tovar 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Bob Schalkwijk 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Bob Schalkwijk 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Miguel Tovar 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Miguel Tovar 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Bob Schalkwijk 
The Frida Kahlo Museum © Sebastián Monsalve 
© Archivo Diego Rivera y Frida Kahlo, Banco de México, fiduciario en el Fideicomiso Museos Diego Rivera y Frida Kahlo
Interview by Fabio Pariante, journalist / Twitter – Instagram
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The Frida Kahlo Museum on social networks: Instagram – Facebook – Twitter
The Frida Kahlo Museum or the Museum of the Casa Azul (Blue House) is located in the center of Coyoacán, a suburb of Mexico City and was opened to the public in 1958 at the behest of the artist Diego Rivera who has been married several times to Frida Kahlo. Today the museum includes some artists’ works and objects, but also works by José María Velasco, Paul Klee, Marcel Duchamp and Yves Tanguy.
During the last years of his life, Rivera dedicated the time to make known the work and the value of his wife: she is the symbol of the scars and pains of every woman, and of the elevation of these elements to art. In the museum, which also tells the daily life of the two artists always in the company of monkeys, parrots and other animals that Frida often depicted on her canvases, today events are also organized that celebrate the two artists, but also the figure of the woman in Mexican society in particular, and in the world of art.
