Hayden Herrera

Hayden Herrera (née Philips; born November 20, 1940) is an American author and historian. Her book Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo was turned into a movie in 2002 and Herrera's biography Arshile Gorky: His Life and Work was named a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.

Hayden Herrera
Born	Hayden Philips (1940-11-20) November 20, 1940 (age 83) Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Education	Radcliffe College BA, 1964, Barnard College MA, Hunter College PhD, 1981, CUNY Graduate Center
Occupation	Author
Notable work	Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo
Spouse(s)	Desmond Heath Phillip Herrera ​ ​ (m. 1961, divorced)​
Relatives	William Phillips

Early life and education

Herrera was born on November 20, 1940^[1] to parents Elizabeth and John Phillips and grandfather William Phillips. Growing up in Vermont, she attended North Country School and The Putney School before enrolling at Radcliffe College.^[2] After leaving Radcliffe to pursue painting, she married Harvard University alumni Phillip Herrera in 1961.^[3] She returned to schooling and graduated with her Bachelor of Arts from Barnard College in 1964 and her Master's degree from Hunter College.^[2]

While pursuing her PhD at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, Herrera travelled to Mexico City with friends who encouraged her to attend Frida Kahlo's art show.^[4] She had not heard of Kahlo before.^[5] In 1976, she wrote an article about Kahlo, which she submitted to a publishing agency, and centered her thesis around the artist in 1981.^[2]

Career

Following her graduation, Herrera formally published her thesis as her first book titled Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo, which was met with positive reviews from critics.^[6] She subsequently published two more books in the 1990s; Mary Frank and Matisse: A Portrait,^[2] which earned her a 1996 Guggenheim Fellowship.^[7] At the turn of the century, her first book was chosen to be adapted into a studio film Frida starring Salma Hayek.^[8] It was a breakthrough role for Hayek, who was nominated for Best Actress for the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award.^[9] Two years later, her biography Arshile Gorky: His Life and Work was named a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.^[10] Following her divorce, she married psychiatrist Desmond Heath and moved to North Salem, New York.^[11]

See also

• Women in the art history field

References

1. "Herrera, Hayden". id.loc.gov. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
2. "Herrera, Hayden". arthistorians.info. Dictionary of Art Historians. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
3. "Hayden Phillips, Philip Herrera Are Wed Here; Bride Wears Organdy at Her Marriage to '56 Alumnus of Harvard". The New York Times. August 18, 1961. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
4. Hodges, Michael H. (April 20, 2015). "'Frida' author to speak at DIA". Detroit News. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
5. Daniels, Mary (July 9, 2003). "Peculiar' art stirs historian". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
6. Power, Michael (May 14, 1983). "A Study of the Artist". The Windsor Star. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
7. "HAYDEN HERRERA". gf.org. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
8. Obejas, Achy (October 27, 2002). "Faithful to Frida". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
9. "Surprising stars who have never won an Oscar". cbsnews.com. 10 February 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
10. "Finalist: Arshile Gorky: His Life and Work, by Hayden Herrera (Farrar)". pulitzer.org. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
11. Lehman, Susan (July 21, 2006). "Writing a New Page in the Life of a Barn". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 22, 2015. Retrieved October 4, 2020.