Body, Mexican identity and self-construction · 1907 -1954

Frida Kahlo transforms her face into symbolic territory: clothing, animals, medicine and vegetation constantly recompose body, identity and personal history.

Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderon was born in Coyoacan in 1907 and died in Casa Azul in 1954. As a child, she suffered from poliomyelitis. In 1925, a serious bus accident caused multiple fractures and opened a long series of operations, corsets and periods of immobility. A mirror placed above his bed and a suitable easel allowed him to paint during convalescence. The self-portrait became his main laboratory, but never a simple repetition of physical features. In the 1930 version, the frontality and the sober background allowed him to paint during convalescence. The self-portrait became his main laboratory, but never a simple repetition of physical features. In the 1930 version, the frontality and the sober background allowed him to paint during convalescence. The self-portrait became his main laboratory, but never a simple repetition of physical features. In the 1930 version, the frontality and the sober background allowed him to paint during convalescence. The self-portrait became his main laboratory, but never a simple repetition of physical features. In the 1930 version, the frontality and the sober background allowed him to paint during convalescence. The self-portrait became his main laboratory, but never a simple portrait surrounded by vegetation. Monkeys, parrots and dogs are not decorative accessories: they prolong affection, solitude, protection or worry. Tehuana clothing, jewelry, hairstyle and plants place the image in a Mexican modernity nourished by popular art, ex-votos and pre-Columbian references. Kahlo also uses her body to talk about pain, gender, desire and politics. In 1951, Self-portrait with the portrait of Doctor Farill shows her in a wheelchair, palette in hand, thanking the surgeon after several operations. In 1951, Self-portrait with the portrait of Doctor Farill shows her in a wheelchair, palette in hand, thanking the surgeon after several operations. In 1951, Self-portrait with the portrait of Doctor Farill shows her in a wheelchair, palette in hand, thanking the surgeon after several operations. The look remains direct as the medical device becomes part of the artistic identity. André Breton brings Kahlo closer to surrealism, but she claims to paint her reality. Her self-portraits thus form a symbolic autobiography where each image selects, masks and reveals the person differently. The selection "Self-portraits of Frida Kahlo" notably compares Self-portrait (1930) - Frida Kahlo and Self-portrait (oval miniature) - Frida Kahlo. His reading favors light.

Kahlo never repeats the same face: each self-portrait reorganizes the body, emotional bonds and identity through a new system of signs.