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The Bay

Indie Artists Vs. The Frida Kahlo Corporation

11:57
Devin KatayamaChloe VeltmanMarisol Medina-CadenaAlan Montecillo
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Shoes with the image of late Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, are exhibited -alongside other commercial products- at her sister's house in the neighborhood of Coyoacan, Mexico City, on April 19, 2018. - Mexican justice Thursday ruled in favour of Frida Kahlo's descendants, banning the sale in the country of a new Frida Barbie doll manufactured by Miami-based toy giant Mattel, recognizing the artist's family is the sole owner of the image rights of the renowned painter.  (ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP via Getty Images)

You can find Frida Kahlo’s image all over the Bay Area. The Mexican painter lived in San Francisco for a little bit in the ’30s and ’40s with her husband, Diego Rivera.

She became even more famous in the years after she died, and now you can find her name and likeness on everything from shoes, to tequila, to even Barbie dolls.

The Frida Kahlo Corporation, which is behind many of these products, wants to monopolize the use of her name — and it’s been going after indie artists who make and sell Frida Kahlo-inspired art. Now, one California artist is taking company to court in San Francisco later this month.

Guest: Chloe Veltman, KQED arts and culture reporter

We’re off on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. But you should check out the latest column from KQED’s Pendarvis Harshaw, where he connects King’s moral arguments with what’s happening in the Bay Area today.

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