Introductions

Hey everyone, my name is Fiona Persaud and I recently graduated from Queensborough Community College with an associate degree in liberal arts. After being unsure of what to do for so long, I finally decided to major in marketing management and decided that I wanted to be a real estate agent as well. I was born in French Guiana, which is located in South America. I came to the United States when I was about 3 months old and grew up in Brooklyn, but I now live in Queens. During the quarantine, I’ve discovered new hobbies such as meditating and journaling. I love the idea of reflecting on myself and trying to grow as an individual. I love meeting and surrounding myself with people of those interests as well because it helps me to stay on that path of growth. An artist that has made a lasting impression on me since I first discovered her is Frida Kahlo. Frida is one of the first female artists who’s work I’ve learned about at a young age. I feel like she is underrated due to the fact that she was a woman, which is what inspires me the most about her. Frida’s paintings display all of the pain and hardship she endured in Mexico and she challenges ideas such as feminism and racism in her artwork. Frida painted real life concepts and was able to incorporate such vibrant colors into her artwork. An inspiring quote by Frida Kahlo is, “I tried to drown my sorrows, but the bastards learned how to swim, and now I’m overwhelmed by this decent and good feeling.” This quote expresses growth in individuality, how a person can go from wanting to suppress their negative feelings to learning how to turn them into positive emotions. I think it also shows how negative emotions can feel everlasting, but in the end they are always temporary because nothing lasts forever. This encourages one to “live in the now.”

Here is a painting by Frida Kahlo which is titled, “Roots.”