Happy Birthday Frida Kahlo (1907-1954)

Dos desnudos en el bosque (La tierra misma)
1939
oil on metal
9 7/8 x 11 7/8 inches

Born July 6, Frida Kahlo is revered for her psychologically revealing self-portraits in bold, vibrant colors. She is celebrated for her attention to Mexican and indigenous culture, and for capturing the female experience.

Two Nudes in the Forest (The Earth Itself) opened at $5 million at Christie’s on May 12, 2016 and sold for $8,005,000 — a world record for any Latin American artist [surpassing Rufino Tamayo’s Troubador which 7.2 million dollars in 2008].

A personal, poetic painting, Kahlo presented this work to her compatriot Dolores del Rio, one of the first Latin American actresses to triumph in Hollywood. After the death of Del Rio, the painting went to her husband, the American Lewis Riley. It was auctioned by Christie’s in 1989 (estimate $120,000 – $160,000) and acquired by collector Mary-Anne Martin, who sold it to an unidentified buyer.

Kahlo’s work has become so demanded in popular culture that it has been reproduced on all types of objects — from bags and blouses to totes and cell phone cases. “Fridomania”