Self Portrait Dedicated to Dr Eloesser - Frida Kahlo
Archival giclée
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Description
A 1940 self-portrait by Frida Kahlo, painted as a gift for her physician, Dr Leo Eloesser, featuring symbolic motifs and a personal dedication.
Painted in 1940, this self-portrait is a direct expression of the artist's gratitude toward her physician, Dr Leo Eloesser. Kahlo maintained a long-standing professional and personal relationship with Eloesser, who provided both medical care and emotional counsel during her turbulent years with Diego Rivera. The work features the artist in a characteristic frontal pose, her gaze fixed directly upon the viewer. Her hair is styled in an elaborate updo, adorned with a collection of flowers that contrast with the stark, somewhat barren background of skeletal branches and large, muted leaves.
Symbolism is present throughout the composition. Kahlo wears a necklace of thorns, a recurring motif in her work that references both physical suffering and religious iconography. The hand-shaped earring, a gift from Pablo Picasso, adds a surrealist touch to the otherwise grounded representation of her features. The lower portion of the painting includes a white ribbon inscribed with a dedication to the doctor, written in the artist's own hand. This inclusion of text serves to ground the painting in a specific moment of personal history, transforming the canvas into a tangible token of appreciation.
The colour palette is dominated by earthy tones, browns, and muted greens, which allow the warmer hues of the flowers and the artist's skin to emerge. The brushwork is precise, reflecting the influence of Mexican retablo painting, a style Kahlo admired for its directness and narrative quality. By placing herself within this specific visual framework, Kahlo presents a controlled image of her identity, balancing the vulnerability of her physical state with a composed, stoic expression. The painting remains a clear example of her ability to weave personal biography into the fabric of her artistic output.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
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Specific Features
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- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
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- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
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- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
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Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Self Portrait Dedicated to Dr Eloesser - Frida Kahlo
Artist Biography
Frida Kahlo
She had already been ill. Polio at six left her right leg thinner than her left, a disproportion she hid with long skirts. The bus accident compounded everything. She would have thirty-five operations over her lifetime. Pain was the background condition of her work, though reducing her paintings to autobiography misses what she actually did with the medium.
She married Diego Rivera in 1929. He was twenty years older, already Mexico's most famous muralist, and physically twice her size. Her parents called the marriage a union between an elephant and a dove. They divorced in 1939, remarried in 1940, and continued a relationship that was mutually unfaithful, politically intense, and artistically competitive. Rivera said she was the better painter. He may have been right.
Her paintings are small. Most are self-portraits. They use the visual language of Mexican folk art, ex-votos, and Aztec mythology, combined with a physical directness that makes Surrealism look polite. Andre Breton called her a Surrealist. She disagreed: 'I paint my own reality.' She was right about that too.
She died in 1954 at forty-seven. Her diary entry for the last day reads 'I hope the leaving is joyful and I hope never to return.'
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