Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo was a leading 20th century Mexican painter, famed for her enigmatic and intricate self-portraits. Born in Mexico City, she showed great academic promise as a child, despite suffering from polio. Aged only 18, a serious bus accident left her in debilitating pain for the rest of her life. During her recovery, she took up painting and also became involved with the Mexican Communist Party. In 1929, she embarked upon a stormy marriage to fellow artist Diego Rivera, characterized by chronic unfaithfulness on both sides. Despite her health problems, Kahlo’s output was prolific, leading to numerous international exhibitions in Europe and the United States. Unlike her muralist husband, she eschewed large-scale public works, focusing instead on intimate self-portraits. Whilst drawing on Mexican folklore, Aztec imagery and European Surrealism, these pictures were at once subtle displays of shifting female identity and tools for self-examination.