Guillermo Kahlo (born Carl Wilhelm Kahlo; 26 October 1871 – 14 April 1941) was a German-Mexican

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who makes photographs. Duties and types of photographers As in oth ...

. He photographically documented important architectural works, churches, streets, landmarks, as well as industries and companies in Mexico at the beginning of the 20th century; because of this, his work has not only artistic value but also historical and documental importance. He was the father of painter Frida Kahlo.

Early life and education

Kahlo was born in Pforzheim,

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden (german: Großherzogtum Baden) was a state in the southwest German Empire on the east bank of the Rhine. It existed between 1806 and 1918. It came into existence in the 12th century as the Margraviate of Baden and subs ...

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

(now in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

, Germany), the son of jeweller Jakob Heinrich Kahlo and Henriette Kaufmann. His daughter, Frida Kahlo, maintained that he was of Hungarian-Jewish descent. A 2005 book by Gaby Franger and Rainer Huhle traced Kahlo's genealogy, and stated that "despite the legend propagated by Frida," Guillermo did not have Jewish Hungarian roots, but was born to

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

parents who "came from families accommodated in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

and Pforzheim." He attended the University of

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

. His father paid him to travel to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

in 1891 as he did not get along with his stepmother. In Mexico, Wilhelm adopted the Spanish equivalent of his name "Guillermo." In July 1894, he solicited Mexican citizenship.

Career

Kahlo's earliest known photograph is from 1897. His first project with Secretary of Finance

José Yves Limantour José Yves Limantour Marquet (; 26 December 1854 – 26 August 1935) was a Mexican financier who served as Secretary of the Finance of Mexico from 1893 until the fall of the Porfirio Díaz regime in 1911. Limantour established the gold standa ...

was in 1900. Kahlo usually used large glass plates that measured 8in x 10in to 11in x 14in. In 1901, he set up a photographic studio, working for ''El Mundo Ilustrado'' and ''Semanario Ilustrado''. He was commissioned by the government to do architectural photographs, probably his best work. He also took photographs of churches with other photographers for a six-volume survey in the 1920s. José Vasconcelos published Kahlo's work involving the churches in 1923 through Mexico's Ministry of Education.

Personal life

Kahlo married Mexican-born María de los Dolores Eleuteria Clotilde Cardeña Espino in August, 1893. The night she died giving birth to their third child, he asked Antonio Calderón for his daughter Matilde’s hand in marriage. After the marriage, Kahlo sent his and Maria’s daughters away to be raised in a

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Angl ...

. Kahlo and Calderón were the parents of seven children, including the painter Frida Kahlo and

Cristina Kahlo Cristina Kahlo y Calderón (1908–1964) was the sister of artist Frida Kahlo. Frida painted a portrait of Cristina, titled ''Portrait of Cristina, My Sister'', and Diego Rivera, Frida's husband, also portrayed Cristina Kahlo in his work. Cristina ...

. Cristina was the only one who had children. Frida once commented that, in her childhood, she would sometimes be present when her father suffered from epileptic seizures and would give him aid. Kahlo died on April 14 1941 in Coyoacán, Mexico City.

In popular media

Kahlo was played by Roger Rees in the 2002 film '' Frida''.

References

*Coronel Rivera, Juan. et al. ''Guillermo Kahlo fotógrafo 1872–1941. Vida y obra''. CNCA / INBA. México 1993.

External links

Huhle, Rainer. "More than Frida's Father, Guillermo Kahlo as a Pioneer of Industrial and Architectural Photography in Mexico."

''Con especialidad en arquitectura''…
from the Revista Imágenes del

Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas The Institute of Aesthetic Research ( es, Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, since its foundation in 1936, research has been carried out in its installations into the different forms of artis ...

(in Spanish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kahlo, Guillermo 1871 births 1941 deaths People from Pforzheim Mexican photographers Photographers from Baden-Württemberg German emigrants to Mexico Naturalized citizens of Mexico Frida Kahlo