Frida Kahlo’s Self Portrait With Cropped Hair is a haunting and poignant reflection of her inner turmoil. Chunks of hair spill across the carpeted floor, coiling around the yellow chair upon which Kahlo sits. Her short, jagged frock, cut a month after her divorce from fellow artist Diego Rivera, stands in contrast to the long, flowing locks of hair left to wither beneath her. Though she mourns Rivera’s absence and unfaithfulness, her posture is strong and assertive, her gaze unwavering and direct, omitting a quiet defiance. Dressed in an oversized suit with a crimson shirt, she holds the scissors that severed her hair with a loose, nonchalant grip—her rebellion and independence fully realised in this gesture. Kahlo portrays herself, capturing her identity in her image of herself. 

For many, Kahlo’s public image is as instantly recognisable as her artworks. From her vibrant Mexican clothing to her striking use of make-up and adornments, she carefully cultivated a persona centred around her self-expression. Yet, her style carries meaning, often referencing the geopolitical issues of her time in the aftermath of the Mexican Revolution, as well as themes of cultural and social identity and the physical trauma she endured, first from childhood polio and later from a near-fatal accident at the age of 18. Kahlo’s disabilities, which manifested in chronic pain, infertility and depression, became a catalyst for her self-fashioning, influencing both her personal life as well as the medical prostheses she painted.

After Kahlo’s death in 1954, Rivera arranged for La Casa Azul to be preserved as a museum in her memory, as a gift to the people of Mexico. Many of her personal possessions were sealed in a bathroom with instructions to remain hidden from the public for fifteen years. It wasn’t, however, until fifty years later that the bathroom was finally opened, revealing a treasure trove of items now regarded as Mexican national prizes. Frida Kahlo: In Her Own Image draws from this collection, presenting 200 of Kahlo’s personal items including her clothing, make-up, medical items and accessories, each offering an intimate view into the life of one of the twentieth century’s most influential artists.

For the first time in Australia, Frida Kahlo’s personal belongings will be transported from the Museo Frida Kahlo in Mexico to the Bendigo Art Gallery in Victoria. This move is a major achievement for regional Victoria and a cause for praise, especially considering that any items leaving La Casa Azul, require the permission of the Mexican government, making such international exhibitions rare. Several of Kahlo’s original drawings, many found alongside her 22,000 letters and 5,000 photographs in the sealed bathrooms of La Casa Azul, will also be on display. The photographs and documents provide a wealth of new insights into Kahlo’s life and work, which may remain largely unknown.

The exhibition aims to expand our collective understanding of her legacy, beyond the surface-level imagery of consumer goods and the limits of pop culture. In recent decades, Kahlo’s image has been commodified, appearing on an ever-expanding range of consumer products, from cushions, clothing, and accessories to even alcohol. This mass production threatens the integrity of the artist’s self-image, which, according to Lauren Ellis, Curatorial Manager at Bendigo Art Gallery, is a “very complex issue for the custodians of Kahlo’s legacy to manage in the digital age. When her image is appropriated for commercial gain, Kahlo’s anti-capitalist beliefs and dislike of Western consumerism come to mind.” To deepen this conversation, Bendigo Gallery curators Circe Henestrosa, Hannit Ankori, and Henry and Lois Foster intend to highlight the dialogues between Kahlo’s clothing, her performances in photography, and her art-making practice, including her famous self-portraits. 

Exhibition highlights include traditional Mexican garments worn by Kahlo, such as the resplandor, a pleated white headdress worn by Tehuana women from Oaxaca. Other items of clothing display the cigarette burns and paint smudges that were a regular part of Kahlo’s life, according to Ellis. Also featured are some of Kahlo’s favourite Revlon cosmetics, including eyebrow pencils, blushes, nail polishes, and lipsticks that she used to dramatise and accentuate her features. These items conjure up the real woman behind the mythologised icon. Additionally, the exhibition showcases medical corsets worn after her spinal surgeries, hand-painted and embellished by Kahlo herself, including one adorned with a broken Tuscan column, symbolising her shattered spine. Visitors will also see Appearances Can Be Deceiving, a self-portrait discovered in 2004, depicting an X-ray view of her injured body. Her left leg, covered in blue butterflies, echoes the handwritten quote, “Why do I want feet if I have wings to fly.” It’s as if Kahlo foresaw the scrutiny of her image. The drawing is contextualised in the exhibition as a codex to Kahlo’s self-fashioning. In the words of curator Circe Henestrosa, Kahlo presents her Tehuana costume as an “elaborate sartorial mask” that telegraphs her political and cultural values, while also composing, concealing and revealing the realities of her disabled body.

The exhibition will additionally feature one of Kahlo’s most significant paintings, Self Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird (1940). Despite its relatively small scale, the painting’s impact is undeniable. Kahlo’s direct gaze commands attention as blood flows from the thorns that pierce her chest, held by a black monkey on her shoulder. The hummingbird, positioned like a pendant upon the thorn necklace, adds to the symbolic weight of the piece. It is not realism that Kahlo depicts, but rather an expression of her interior realm in all its contradiction. The portrait is on loan from the Harry Ransom Centre at the University of Texas, Austin, marking the first time the painting will be displayed in Australia. Furthermore, the exhibition will showcase Still Life with Parrot and Fruit (1951), a piece never before displayed in Australia. The painting centres upon a large watermelon and other native fruits, each rich in symbolism and pride within Mexican culture and art. The melon, sliced to reveal its flesh and seeds, goes beyond the realm of still life, possibly serving as a poignant reference to the numerous surgeries Kahlo endured and her growing dependence on pain medication. While Kahlo herself may not be present, her aura permeates the fruits and objects she paints. 

Kahlo continues to mesmerise audiences more than seventy years after her death. The purpose of this exhibition is to explore how Kahlo consciously shaped and curated her appearance, embedding herself in art history. Frida Kahlo: In her own image invites viewers to set aside assumptions and find the essence of Kahlo in her belonging—to see the real Frida, as she would see herself.

Frida Kahlo: In her own image is now open and continues until July 13, 2025, exclusive to Bendigo Art Gallery.