Frida Kahlo

1907 -1954

Self Portrait 1941

Self Portrait wearing a velvet dress 1926

Self Portrait – oil on canvas (31 x 23 cms )This self portrait is Kahlo’s first serious work It was painted as a gift for her student Boyfriend who had left her and she hoped to win him back.The aristocratic pose reflects Kahlo’s interest in the painting of the Italian Renaissance , while the elongation of the neck recalls the work of Parmigianino and Modigliani.

Self Portrait with monkey 1938

Oil on masonite (40.1cm x 30 cm )In Mexican mythology the monkeyis the patron of dance , but also a symbolof lust . Here however , the artist portrays the animal in such a way that it becomes the only truly living, tender and soulful being,its arm placed protectively around her neck.

Self Portrait with Thorn necklace and Humming Bird 1940

Self portrait 1940

Self portrait dedicated to Dr Eloesser .On the banderole at the bottom , the dedication reads “ I painted my portrait in the year 1940 For Doctor Leo, my doctor and my best friend. With al love. Frida Kahlo.”

Self Portrait as a Tehuna or Diego in my thoughts or Thinking of Diego 1943

The portrait of Rivera on her brow in dictates Kahlo’s obsessive love for the fresco painterHe is constantly in her thoughts. She is Wearing the Tehuna costume which Rivera loved so much. It comes form a region in southwest Mexico in which matriarchalTraditions survive even today, and whoseeconomic structure reflects the dominant roleOf women. The roots of the leaves which she Wears in her hair suggest the pattern of a spider’s web in which she seeks to trap herprey - Diego