Frida Kahlo 'Portrait of a Lady in White' Sells for $5.8 Million at Christies Latin America

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Frida Kahlo, Portrait of a Lady in White (c. 1929). Courtesy of Christie's Images Ltd. via ArtNet

Frida Kahlo’s ‘Portrait of a Lady in White’ (c. 1929) carried a pre-auction estimate of $3 -$5 million. The painting sold Wednesday at Christie’s Latin American art sale in New York for more than $5.8 million, making it the second-highest price ever paid for a Frida Kahlo painting. Her ‘Dos Desnudos en el Bosque (La Tierra Misma)’ (1939) sold for over $8 million at Christie’s in 2016

A visitor looks at “Portrait of a Lady in White” at the Frida Kahlo Retrospective at Martin-Gropius-Bau on April 29, 2010 in Berlin. Courtesy of Sean Gallup via ArtNet.

The painting has been maintained in private collections, most recently the collection of Dr. Helga Prignitz-Poda, a Kahlo scholar. One of Kahlo’s few oil paintings, “Recent research suggests that the subject of the portrait is Kahlo’s high school friend Elena Boder, a Russian émigré and an influential doctor. It was previously believed that the sitter was Kahlo’s American friend Dorothy Brown Fox.” writes Forbes.

Frida Kahlo Has A New York Moment With New York's Spring Style Issue + Brooklyn Museum Show

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Illustrator Malika Favre’s latest project is the cover art for The New Yorker’s Spring Style Issue, and it’s a beauty. For Frida Kahlo lovers, Favre’s references are unconsciously obvious in ‘Spring to Mind’, her seventh cover for the magazine. Interviewed by Françoise Mouly, Favre explains how her minimalist style exploded into an effusion of color and floral shapes.

The inspiration was Frida Kahlo’s iconic look. I wanted to retain the energy and vibrancy of her paintings and the strength of the woman herself, hence the looser strokes and the explosion of color. This cover may be flamboyant, and it does use organic shapes, but it’s still in tune with my aesthetic approach. My work has a lot to do with colors and shapes, and this piece is another way to experiment with combining those things.

ONE OF FAVRE’S EARLY SKETCHES FOR THE COVER, AND HER SNAPSHOT OF A MARKET IN MEXICO CITY. MALIKA FAVRE

The use of Frida Kahlo inspiration for the New Yorker also relates to a new exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum. The show is not a major exhibition of Kahlo’s paintings with only 11 out of more than 350 objects. Rather ‘Frida Kahlo: Appearances Can Be Deceiving,” is a recapitulation of her life through personal possessions — her clothing, jewelry and favorite objects. The selection of the rich skirts and blouses from the Oaxacan city of Tehuantepec and her statement jewelry that were so key to Kahlo’s substantative style are intrinsically embedded in her art.

Writing for The New York Times, Jason Farago reminds us in Frida Kahlo’s Home Is Still Unlocking Secrets, 50 Years Later: “Hard to imagine she once worked in shadow; when she had her first New York exhibition, in 1938, Vogue preferred to name her “Madame Diego Rivera.”’

'Frida's Parlour' Opens In London Until June 16, 2018, Landmark Frida Kahlo Exhibition At V&A Follows

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If you just happen to be dropping into London this weekend -- or anytime between May 19-June 16, 2018 take a stroll over to 141 Ebury Street and Frida's Parlour. 

Launched to coincide with Belgravia in Bloom, a week-long floral festival held across the district, as well as with the V&A’s landmark Frida Kahlo exhibition, the Parlour will serve as a social space throughout the day, with free entry for all visitors. During the evenings, the venue will play host to a series of hands-on evening workshops inspired by Kahlo’s unique style (booking essential here). Try your hand at floral embroidery with Lora Avedian, mix a Mexican cocktail with the Cubitt House team or craft your own jewellery with Luminaire Arts. 

Bowing to the need for a selfie, visitors can snap away inside the Wallpaper Room. The first 50 guests will receive a limited-edition tote bag designed by the artist Zabou, whose mural depicting the artist can be seen in Belgravia’s Eccleston Yards. via Town & Country UK

We're looking for the specific Zabou mentioned, but in fact Zabou has enjoyed a love affair with Frida Kahlo for some time. In these images, Zabou teams up with Mexican yarn artist Villana for some great Frida street art.

Would Frida Kahlo Call Donald Trump 'Chimp' & Hillary Clinton 'Bonobo'?

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Would Frida Kahlo Call Donald Trump 'Chimp' & Hillary Clinton 'Bonobo'?

Bonobos are by definition progressive Democrats and -- upon reflection -- perhaps the Democratic party should schedule a presentation on patriarchal chimps and matriarchal bonobos at the upcoming July presidential convention. With a prime time night presentation, the DNC could give the nation Mother Nature's best reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump.

Simply stated, bonobos rock and Frida Kahlo would have found the species to reaffirm her feminist beliefs around cooperative culture and our human roots in Africa. Coming out of Philadelphia and heading for November's presidential election, we must be sure that a bonobo rules. ~ Anne

Frida Kahlo's Nature Obsession Thrives At New York Botanical Garden

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Frida Kahlo’s Nature Obsession Thrives At New York Botanical Garden

A blockbuster exhibit honoring Frida Kahlo has opened at the New York Botanical Gardens, her first solo appearance in New York in a decade. FRIDA KAHLO: Art, Garden, Life has a unique focus on Kahlo’s relationship with nature in her native country of Mexico. From her garden and home decor and the complex use of nature in the artist’s art, this New York Botanical Exhibit is the first to focus exclusively on Kahlo’s intense interest in the botanical world and will close on Nov. 1, 2015.

Frida Kahlo Photographs By Gisèle Freund

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Frida Kahlo Photographs By Gisèle Freund See images from the book. 4-2015

In 1950, photographer Gisèle Freund embarked on a two-week trip to Mexico, but she wouldn’t leave until two years later. There she met the legendary couple Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Welcomed into their home, she immersed herself in their private lives and the cultural and artistic diversity of the country, taking hundreds of photographs. These powerful photographs, among the last taken before Kahlo’s death, bear poignant witness to Frida’s beauty and talent.

Showcasing more than 100 of these rare images, many of which have never been published before, the book also includes previously unpublished commentary by Gisèle Freund about Frida Kahlo, texts by Kahlo’s biographer Gérard de Cortanze and art historian Lorraine Audric, as well as a link to a previously unreleased color film, shot by Freund, showing Diego Rivera at work.