ART: “Frida Kahlo: The Complete Paintings” - The Most Comprehensive Study of the Iconic Artist’s Work to Date.
Frida Kahlo, Self-portrait (Time Flies) (ca. 1929). Photo by LML Archive, ©Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2021; reproduction authorised by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, 2021.
Published by TASCHEN and edited by Luis-Martín Lozano, Frida Kahlo: The Complete Paintings is a 624-page book that contains 152 paintings, diary entries, letters and photographs of the iconic Mexican artist.
Frida Kahlo, What Water Gave Me (1938). Photo by Christie’s Images/Bridgeman Images, ©Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2021; reproduction authorised by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, 2021.
After rising to prominence in 1939 for her masterful self-portraiture, Kahlo, who was openly bisexual, gained international recognition for challenging notions of identity, gender, sexuality, feminism and patriarchy.
“I really hope readers realise how much more complex her painting is, and how well-versed she was in art history. She was looking at many, many sources, from German New Objectivity to Surrealism, and also Pre-Columbian art and Egyptian antiquities,” says Lozano in an interview with ArtNet. “All this together makes her paintings much more than just her biography.”
Frida Kahlo beside a Pre-Hispanic sculpture in the garden of the Casa Azul (1951). Photo ©bpk/IMEC, Fonds MCC/Gisèle Freun, ©Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2021; reproduction authorized by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, 2021.
“Kahlo was deeply influenced by indigenous Mexican culture, which is apparent in her use of bright colors and dramatic symbolism. She frequently included the symbolic monkey. In Mexican mythology, monkeys are symbols of lust, yet Kahlo portrayed them as tender and protective symbols. Christian and Jewish themes are often depicted in her work. She combined elements of the classic religious Mexican tradition with surrealist renderings,” writes the Frida Kahlo Foundation.
Frida Kahlo, Self-portrait With Small Monkey (1945). Photo by akg-images, Museo Dolores Olmedo, Mexico City, Xochimilco, ©Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2021; reproduction authorised by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, 2021.
Frida Kahlo, Self-portrait (with Dr. Farill), 1951. Photo by Rafael Doniz, courtesy Hauser & Wirth Collection Services, ©Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2021; reproduction authorized by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, 2021.
Kahlo passed away July 13, 1954, but remains one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.
You can purchase a copy of Frida Kahlo. The Complete Paintings here.