Known for her vibrancy in her paintings, Mexican artist Frida Kahlo will always be remembered for her self-portraits. Particularly, for the pain and passion found within her work in addition to her celebration of Mexican and Indigenous culture mixed in with feminist movements. Kahlo accurately depicts the female experience and form.
A few days ago a painting called “Diego y yo (1949)” created by Frida herself went to auction at Sotheby’s. It took place in their Modern art auction’s marquee lot.
Moreover, some projected for Frida Kahlo to surpass Georgia O’ Keeffee as the highest-priced female in the auction. But Kahlo’s piece failed to surpass O’ Keeffee’s $44.4 million records. “Diego y Yo” barely reached the standards of only $30 million. It finally sold for $34.9 million to Eduardo F. Costantini, an Argentinian collector.
It’s the first time in 30 years that “Diego y Yo” appeared on the market. The art piece symbolizes the stormy relationship between Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. The couple’s 25-year marriage was passionate and turbulent . The imagery of the artist contains the third eye in her forehead. This is to symbolize the gravity of her overthinking of him, according to Sotheby’s.
“Here her loose hair (usually in tight braids) almost seems to strangle her; her cheeks are flushed and her eyes are intense and tearful,” said Sotheby’s.
“The painting captures an inner restlessness and anguish, poignantly reflected in three tears that flow from his eyes evoking Our Lady of Sorrows, an iconic image in the history of Western art.”
