Creativity is a wonderful phenomena that can be experienced by many. As creativity is a phenomenon it is hard to describe but it is something that you know when you are experiencing/witnessing it. Finley and Csikszentmihalyi (2018) described different types of creativity labeled as “little c” and “Big C.” “Little c” is more mundane creativity that can be attained by any and all persons. “Big C” on the other hand is in regards to highly advanced creativity. This category is for those who have made a change in their domain of creativity (Finley 2020).
One person who displays highly advanced creativity is Frida Kahlo. Kahlo is one of the most famous and influential female artists. For someone to be considered creative with a “Big C”, they typically need to be intrinsically motivated (Finley & Csikszentmihalyi, 2018). Kahlo was primarily motivated to create her famous works of art as self expression and coping with the traumatic events that affected her. When Kahlo was young she had polio, resulting in the malformation of one of her legs, and at age 18 she was in a horrific accident that left her bedwridden for several months. This is when she started painting. During her time of severe injury she battled her loneliness with art, and did so again when her famed painter husband, David Rivera, was away. A few years into her marriage to Rivera, Kahlo became pregnant and due to her fragile health, miscarried the baby. To cope with the loss of her child Kahlo once again turned to art (Souter, 2011). Kahlo had a fighting spirit and displayed that in her art. Her creativity was an effective form of catharsis in her wild and challenging life.
Although most of her motivation was intrinsic, there were some extrinsic factors that inspired her creativity. For many years she painted for herself. Her art being overshadowed by her famous husband, being thought of as just dabbling in her husband’s art form. Later in her life, after years of painting, her work started to become more recognized. Once she realized that her creativity could contract monetary value, she began to sell her work, when before she would use them as personal gifts to the people in her life. She used the money earned from her creativity to pay for her numerous medical expenses she had acquired throughout her life, and to maintain the lifestyle she and her husband enjoyed (Souter, 2011). But like mentioned before the majority of her intentions of her artwork were intrinsic.
Kahlo exhibited many traits that are associated with highly creative people. She switches between being responsible and irresponsible, she follows the rules while still being rebellious, she was not known to conform to gender norms, There has been pain and suffering through out the majority of her life, and she received strong support from her family, particularly her father. (Finley, 2020). Kahlo demonstrates her responsibility and irresponsibility when she found out she was pregnant. She was willing and excited to take one the responsibility of a child as she felt prepared by taking care of her husband. Her irresponsibility was exhibited when she went to the doctor to ask advice about whether or not she should have the child due to her fragile health. When the doctor prescribed bed rest Kahlo completely ignored the advice (Souter, 2011). Another characteristic of a highly creative individual is going outside the gender norms. Kahlo was taken as an apprentice by her father, which was normal for a son rather than a daughter, she crossdressed, had affairs with both men and women, and showcased more masculine features in her paintings such as her unibrow and the hair on her upper lip (Souter, 2011).
You can see Kahlo’s affect on her domain later in her career. She had several expositions dedicated to her, she became a professor at an art school, received a national painting prize, had a museum dedicated to her work in her childhood home (Souter, 2011), and her work and life are studied all over. Frida Kahlo perfectly fits the definition of a “Big C” creative.
Three Little Birds 