Frida Kahlo: Making Her Self Up

A fresh perspective on Kahlo's compelling life story through her most intimate personal belongings.

Clothes, jewellery, makeup and a defiantly red-leather-booted prosthetic leg belonging to Frida Kahlo, which were sealed in her house for more than 50 years, are to be shown at the V&A in London, the first time they will have been seen outside Mexico.

The museum on Thursday announced details of a major show exploring one of the most recognised artists and women of the 20th century.

Claire Wilcox, senior curator of fashion at the V&A, said Kahlo was an important “countercultural and feminist symbol” and being able to exhibit the items from Mexico was “a huge privilege”.

More than 200 items from the Blue House, the home of Kahlo and her muralist husband, Diego Rivera, on the outskirts of Mexico City, are coming to London.

After Kahlo died in 1954, aged 47, Rivera locked up her belongings in a room and said it should not be opened until after his death. In the event, it was not opened until 2004, revealing a fascinating treasure trove of clothes, makeup, jewellery, medicines and other intimate possessions.

“This is the real material evidence of the way Kahlo constructed her identity,” said Wilcox.

The show will explore how the artist empowered herself through her art, clothes and style after a difficult early life. Aged 18, she was involved in a near-fatal bus crash that left her in pain and incapacitated for long periods.

Preview here