Frida Kahlo: the making of an icon

Exhibition at Tate Modern, London, 25 June 2026 – 3 January 2027

An intrepid and revolutionary artist, Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) did not merely create a body of work; she shaped herself into her own most powerful creation. Behind the floral crowns and the now universally recognised imagery – from her physical suffering transcended through self-portraiture to the political statement of her traditional Tehuana attire – every aspect of her life was an act of resistance and self-presentation.

This exhibition catalogue presents works by the artist that reveal her many facets: the devoted wife, the intellectual, the modern artist and the political activist. Over 130 works, including some of her most famous paintings, documents, photographs and memorabilia from Kahlo’s archives, as well as works by more than 80 of her contemporaries and artists from subsequent generations whom she inspired, shed light on one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. The book invites readers to look beyond the commercial myth and discover how the artist from Coyoacán fused art, identity and pain to become a timeless icon.