Frida Kahlo Self Portrait Goes On View at Sotheby's Tomorrow
On 25 May 2011 Sotheby’s New York will present a remarkable single owner evening sale that includes many of the most important artists and movements in Latin American art, including superb works by Rufino Tamayo, Diego Rivera, Matta and Frida Kahlo, among others. The paintings in the sale celebrate the diverse styles and cultural origins of Latin American art. A Discerning Eye: Latin American Masterpieces from A Private Collection will be sold on the same evening as Fernando Botero: A Celebration and Latin American Art.
One of the major highlights of the sale is Frida Kahlo’s self portrait Autorretrato en Miniaturawhich is just two inches (five cm) in height making it the smallest self portrait ever made by the Mexican painter and perhaps her most coquettish (est. $800,000/1.2 million). Kahlo painted the portrait for her lover, the artist José Bartoli, who kept the small treasure in his possession for over 50 years. The dedication Para Bartoli con amor, Mara, is on the reverse of its small oval panel. Kahlo styled the portrait on her painting, Arbol de la Esperanza, in which she appears in Tehuana costume, her hair braided and crowned by a red ribbon or flowers. In 2005 it featured in the critically acclaimed exhibition Frida Kahlo at Tate Modern.
The pre-sale exhibition opens on 21 May with select highlights, including Autorretrato en Miniatura, going on view tomorrow, Friday 29 April.
