Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, celebrated wife of F. Scott and definite entity in her own right, was born today in Montgomery, Alabama in 1900.

The life of the Fitzgeralds is well-known for its parallel to the 1920s, a decade of wild times and success followed by depression, loss, financial uncertainty. Both glorified and overshadowed by her famously talented husband, Zelda found the passing of youth--which had been so integral to her high spirits and charm--extremely difficult. Things did not end well for her, but that can be read about in an article that I wrote for suite101 or many other fine websites and features devoted to Zelda. I just wanted to show an example of her artwork here and quote her words, and let Zelda be Zelda today. And I was going to include her painting Mad Tea Party, which seems to illustrate her breakdown and failure at a professional ballet career all surrounded by the beautiful but eerie forest and buildings of an asylum, but that's going back to the madness and sadness again.

This Zelda painting is of the Great Smoky Mountains and seems to reflect a quieter time in her mind. More of her paintings, including Mad Tea Party, can be seen at this excellent site.

...she refused to be bored chiefly because she wasn't boring.

Women sometimes seem to share a quiet, unalterable dogma of persecution that endows even the most sophisticated of them with the inarticulate poignancy of the peasant.

Zelda Fitzgerald