Frida Kahlo’s Self-Portrait Poised to Shatter Auction Records—What This Unseen Masterpiece Reveals Will Leave You Speechless
Imagine a painting so rare, so steeped in symbolism and personal drama, that it could quietly sneak into the record books this November—perhaps fetching a jaw-dropping $44.4 million or more. That’s exactly what’s on the line for Frida Kahlo’s 1940 self-portrait, El sueño (La cama), a haunting glimpse into the artist’s tumultuous life, where a papier-mâché skeleton and lush vines share the bed with the great Kahlo herself. Now, here’s a twist: this isn’t just another auction tag—it could become the priciest work by a female artist ever sold at auction. So, besides wondering who’d pay that kind of dough for a dream, have you ever pondered what it’s like to share your sleeping quarters with Death, floral bouquet in hand? Surreal? Maybe. Totally Frida? Without a doubt. Let’s dive into how this sleepy masterpiece might shake up art history—again.
Frida Kahlo painted El sueño (La cama) in 1940, and if it brings in more than $44.4 million when it goes up for auction, it will break records.
Sotheby’s El sueño (La cama), painted by Frida Kahlo in 1940.
A self-portrait by Frida Kahlo is going up for sale this November, and it could break the record for the most expensive work by a female artist ever to be sold at auction.
It’s estimated that the piece, El sueño (La cama), will sell for between $40 million and $60 million. If it sells for $44.4 million or more, it will shatter the record. So far, the most expensive Kahlo work ever sold at auction is Diego and I, which brought in a staggering $34.9 million in 2021.
El sueño (La cama) is being auctioned by Sotheby’s as part of the Exquisite Corpus surrealist private auction alongside works by artists like Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, and Dorothea Tanning.
Frida Kahlo’s Lesser-Known Self-Portrait
El sueño (La cama), which translates to The Dream (The Bed), was painted by Kahlo in 1940. It depicts Kahlo sleeping in a canopy bed wrapped in vines with a skeleton holding a bouquet of flowers reclining above her.
“It’s not just one of the more important works by Kahlo, but one of a few that exists outside of Mexico and not in a museum collection,” the vice chairman and head of impressionist and modern art for Sotheby’s Americas, Julian Dawes, told the Associated Press. “So as both a work of art and as an opportunity in the market, it could not be more rare and special.”
Kahlo painted the work in 1940 during a tumultuous time in her personal life. She had just divorced her husband, muralist Diego Rivera, though they soon remarried. It was also the year that Kahlo’s former lover, Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky, was assassinated. All the while, she was experiencing chronic pain from a bus accident when she was 18.
Public DomainFrida Kahlo circa 1932.
This accident and the resulting injuries left Kahlo bedridden for periods of time throughout the remainder of her life. She often painted from her bed, and she depicted medical imagery in works like The Broken Column and Henry Ford Hospital.
It’s estimated that El sueño (La cama) will sell for at least $40 million, and perhaps even up to $60 million. If it does, it will break the record for the most expensive piece of art created by a woman to sell at auction.
The record is currently held by Georgia O’Keeffe’s Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1, which sold for $44.4 million in 2014.
Was Kahlo A Surrealist?
El sueño (La cama), while an interesting example of Frida Kahlo’s use of symbolism, is not just an allegory. Kahlo really slept with a papier-mâché skeleton on top of her bed.
“Her greatest works derive from this moment between the late 1930s and the early 1940s,” Dawes explained. “She has had a variety of tribulations in her romantic life with Diego, in her own life with her health, but at the same time she’s really at the height of her powers.”
Bernard Silberstein/Art Gallery NSWFrida Kahlo pictured with her bed, complete with the skeleton on top.
The piece is one of 80 works by surrealist artists to go up for auction as part of Sotheby’s Exquisite Corpus private collection. The sale will feature paintings, drawings, and sculptures from the likes of Kay Sage, Remedios Varo, and Valentine Hugo.
However, Frida Kahlo did not describe herself as a surrealist artist. She once stated, “They thought I was a surrealist but I wasn’t. I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality.”
However, Kahlo’s “fascination with the subconscious” and unique imagery qualify her works as surrealist, according to Dawes. Considering the parallels between the 1920s and the 2020s, Dawes believes interest in surrealist art is on the rise.
“Coming out of a crippling global pandemic, a world that has to confront war on a more graphic and intimate level that had ever been experienced before — and economic and political and social forces swirling in the background that are eerily similar,” Dawes said. This may all come together to bring in a record-breaking bid for Kahlo’s self-portrait.
After reading about Frida Kahlo’s potentially record-breaking self-portrait, take a look at 52 photos from the artist’s life. Then, learn about the mystery surrounding Frida Kahlo’s death.
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