Frida Kahlo's self-portrait sets record; Gets sold for Rs 487 crores in just 4 minutes

Frida Kahlo's "psychologically charged" self-portrait gets sold at Rs 487 crores (Picture Credit: X)

When it comes to guessing the price of some artworks, most of us usually fail, because the amount is so staggering. Recently, legendary Mexican painter Frida Kahlo's self-portrait was sold at a New York art auction. The amusing part? It got sold in just 4 minutes of bidding. Can you guess the price at which it was sold? Well, as per a report by BBC, the artwork was sold for $54.7 million (approximately Rs 487 crores).

What's more is that the sale of this self-portrait set a new record, as this was the highest amount that was paid for a painting by a female artist. This new sale has surpassed the amount that her last painting titled 'Diego y Yo' had fetched which was $34.9 million (or Rs 309 crores).

The sale of the artwork happened at the Sotheby's auction house on November 20.

About Frida Kahlo's self-portrait 'El Sueno'

Can you imagine that the self portrait was made in 1940? Well, yes! It was named as El Sueno or The Dream (The Bed) by Kahlo herself. A Sotheby member revealed that this self-portrait is actually one of the most "psychologically charged" ones. Wondering why? Well, it is deemed so because Kahlo had made this portrait when she was going through a particularly tough time in her life. She made this portrait in the same year her former lover got assassinated, an event that led up to her remarriage and divorce.

Take a look at the post:

 

 

 

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One look at the painting and chances are you will be perplexed as to what the portrait really represents. On a closer look, it can be seen that Kahlo is depicted to be sleeping in a bunk bed wrapped in a canopy of leaves and it is on the overhead bunk, a skeleton can be seen covered in dynamite. This whole depiction is symbolic of the fact that Kahlo was dealing with a lot and yet she didn't give up on life. It showed her grit and resilience despite struggling with loss and illness.

Head of Latin American art at Sotheby Anna Di Stasi told AFP that the painting is a "very personal" image, as it can be seen how folkloric motifs from Mexican culture is merged with European surrealism. She also went on to add that, “This record-breaking result shows just how far we have come, not only in our appreciation of Frida Kahlo's genius, but in the recognition of women artists at the very highest level of the market.”

About Frida Kahlo:

Kahlo is regarded as one of the greatest painters from Mexico. Since childhood, she suffered from polio and later she had to deal with serious injuries, as she had met with a road accident. Her body of work has been hailed over the years, because she wonderfully merged realism with fantasy.

She was also fiercely independent and was considered as an icon within the LGBTQ+ community.

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