Explore Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) was born in Coyoacán, Mexico City, and rose to international acclaim for her portraits and self-portraits. She also made paintings inspired by Mexican artifacts, nature, and popular culture. Her folk art style explored themes of gender, class, and race in Mexican society, often incorporating autobiographical references.

In 1925, when she was 18 years old, a traffic accident left Kahlo in a full-body cast and confined to her bed for weeks. During this period, she developed some of the themes she is best known for in her work: pain, healing, and resolute honesty.

Kahlo also challenged traditional gender roles, frequently wearing trousers and other men’s garments. And she embraced her now iconic unibrow and mustache, portraying these characteristics boldly in her self-portraits in a fearless and radical embrace of her own identity. When the Louvre—the world’s largest art museum—acquired one of her works in 1939, she became the first Mexican artist in the storied institution’s collection.

The artist’s personal life has been the subject of fascination, especially her marriage to renowned Mexican artist Diego Rivera (1886-1957). Their tumultuous relationship captured the public imagination, and much of Kahlo’s work results from frank observation and her emotions during this time.