FRIDA KAHLO

Header Painting

The Suicide of Dorothy Hale, 1938/39

Clare Boothe Luce, publisher of the fashion magazine "Vanity Fair", commissioned Frida Kahlo to paint a portrait of her friend, the actress Dorothy Hale, with whom Frida Kahlo had also been acquainted.

Hale had committed suicide in October 1938 by jumping out of the window of her high-rise apartment. When Clare Booth Luce received the picture, she seriously considered destroying it. She would not have requested such a gory picture of her worst enemy, much less of her unfortunate friend, she later said in an interview.

Gallery Notes

The gallery below is listed in chronological order.

More will be added on the history of each painting shortly and how and why (as far as we know - it's almost impossible to second-guess the genius of Frida Kahlo) each work came about.

Frida led a tortured life and I can think of no other artist who has conveyed his or her pain so vividly. I think that is why she strikes a chord today - she was so far ahead of her time in replicating the despair of the soul that we just haven't caught up yet.

We probably never will.

And the works are so beautiful. You can't get away from that fact. Jaw-droppingly beautiful, powerful, unforgettable.

Paintings 1926-1938

Self-Portrait in a Velvet Dress

(1926)

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Self-Portrait

(1930)

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Frida and Diego Rivera

(1931)

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Portrait of Eva Frederick

(1931)

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Self-Portrait on the Borderline between Mexico and the United States

(1932)

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Henry Ford Hospital

(1932)

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COTTON CANVAS PRINT | Details on the Painting

A Few Little Pricks

(1935)

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My Nurse and I

(1937)

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Self-Portrait - The Frame

(1938)

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COTTON CANVAS PRINT | Details on the Painting

Self-Portrait with Itzcuintli Dog

(1938)

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