Description
Self-Portrait with Braid is a 1941 work by Frida Kahlo: she paints herself to the shoulders, her black hair pulled tight, with a great braid that rises above her head in loops like a crown. Round her neck hangs a necklace of stones with a carved pendant, and huge pale green leaves wrap her bare shoulders. The original, oil on masonite, is 51 cm high and 38.7 cm wide and belongs to the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection. Our painter paints it for you by hand in oil on canvas, in one of 8 portrait sizes between 40 x 51 and 147 x 193 cm or made to measure; before dispatch we send you a photograph of the finished painting.
| Title: | Self-Portrait with Braid |
| Other titles: | Autorretrato con trenza · Selbstporträt mit Zopf |
| Painter: | Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) |
| Year painted: | 1941 |
| Original size: | 51 cm x 38.7 cm (height x width) |
| Original technique: | Oil on masonite |
| Painting style: | Mexican modernism |
| Located at: | Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection |
| Our reproduction: | Hand-painted oil on canvas, 8 sizes or made to measure |
Self-Portrait with Braid – Frida Kahlo
What does Self-Portrait with Braid show?
Frida Kahlo looks at us from close up, almost head-on, her face turned only slightly aside. Her black hair is parted in the middle and pulled back hard, leaving her forehead completely bare. Her dark brows meet above the nose in a single arch, her lips are bright red and her gaze is calm and direct.
The real event happens above her head. The braid, painted in wine-red and violet strands, twists into two large loops that knot into each other, and small tufts of black hair spring from the ends.
Round her neck lies a necklace of rounded grey-green stones. A long stone hangs at the centre, and to one side sits a small carved face that stares straight out of the painting.
Her shoulders are bare. From below, enormous pale green leaves with jagged edges and curling stems grow up around her, covering her chest and reaching chin height on the right. The background is pale cream with soft clouds of grey and pink, so the hair, the lips and the foliage stand out all the more.
What is the story behind the painting?
The year before it was painted had been a turbulent one for her. Kahlo had divorced the muralist Diego Rivera in 1939; on 8 December 1940 the two remarried in San Francisco in a simple civil ceremony and soon returned to Mexico.
Kahlo liked to wear traditional Mexican clothing to stress her mestiza ancestry: long, colourful skirts, huipil blouses, rebozo shawls, elaborate headdresses and plenty of jewellery. The braid pinned up into a crown and the heavy stone necklace belong to that same world.
No published reading of this work exists, so read it with your eyes. Wikipedia notes that she drew on the nature and the artefacts of Mexico; here the two meet, with the leaves wrapping her like a dress and a necklace of stone at her throat.
Why does this self-portrait catch the eye?
Frida Kahlo is known above all for her self-portraits, and this one stands out for its hair. Instead of the flowers or ribbons she wears in some other self-portraits, her only ornament here is her own hair, braided into a real sculpture.
The second surprise is the balance between body and plants. The leaves are bigger than her head and almost swallow her, yet her face stays perfectly still.
Around the time it was painted, her reputation was growing abroad: in 1941 her work was shown at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, and the next year she took part in two high-profile exhibitions in New York. For more on her life, read the Wikipedia article on the painter (in English).
Where is the original?
The original belongs to the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection, which holds works by Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and other Mexican modernists.
Between 2019 and 2022, works from this collection toured North American museums in the exhibition Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism, with stops in Denver, Portland and Québec among others.
Kahlo painted the self-portrait in oil on masonite, a rigid board of pressed fibres. Our version is painted not on board but on canvas.
Self-Portrait with Braid or another Kahlo?
This upright canvas painting is quiet, with a pale background, so it suits a bedroom, a study or a hallway, where you see it close up.
From the same year comes Me and My Parrots, with four green parrots on her shoulders and lap. A year earlier she painted Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, also a chest-length portrait with dense leaves behind her.
A red ribbon woven into her hair and wound round her neck, with a small monkey behind her shoulder, appears in Self-Portrait with Monkey. The opposite hairstyle, long hair falling freely over her shoulders, is in Self-Portrait with Loose Hair from 1947. The full range of famous Frida Kahlo paintings we paint is on the Frida Kahlo page.
How does our painter paint the braid and the leaves?
Frida Kahlo painted in clear, flat colours with firm outlines and a smooth surface without visible brushmarks.
Our painter first lays in the cloudy background and the base areas of face, shoulders and leaves in thin layers. Then, over several passes, the face, the dark brows and the red lips are modelled, and the leaves gain lighter edges and veins.
The braid takes the most patience: each strand is twisted separately, with its own light and shadow, and fine stray hairs must remain at the ends of the loops. The stones of the necklace and the tiny carved face come last. The result is a Frida Kahlo reproduction with real layers of paint, not a print. As an oil painting reproduction, it looks a little different in morning and evening light.
Which size suits which wall?
In short: 40 x 51 or 45 x 60 cm above a bedside table or on a narrow wall, 58 x 75 or 73 x 94 cm above a chest of drawers or a bed, 80 x 108 or 100 x 135 cm above a sofa, and 113 x 155 or 147 x 193 cm for a tall wall or a stairwell.
We paint the self-portrait in 8 portrait sizes (width x height): 40 x 51, 45 x 60, 58 x 75, 73 x 94, 80 x 108, 100 x 135, 113 x 155 and 147 x 193 cm. Closest to the original is 40 x 51 cm, the same height but 1.3 cm wider; every other size is larger.
Kahlo is shown to the shoulders, so in the largest sizes her face is bigger than life. As a painting for the living room above a sofa, 80 x 108 and 100 x 135 cm work best; hang it with the lower edge about 20 cm above the backrest.
Can I get another size or a frame?
The original is roughly 3 : 4 in proportion, so we can also paint it in a size that is not on the list without cropping the top of the braid or the lower leaves. Write to us with the width and height you need, and we reply with a price and a date.
Your self-portrait can travel rolled, stretched on a stretcher bar or framed; the stretching and framing are done by our workshop in Slovenia. Our 3D app is for choosing the frame only; seeing the painting on your own wall is a separate service.
When will my painting arrive?
We start painting as soon as you confirm the order, and within 15 to 45 working days the self-portrait is finished. Before we dispatch your self-portrait, you get a photograph of the finished painting and can still ask for changes.
No customs apply to deliveries in Slovenia or elsewhere in the EU, and every order falls under our returns policy.
Self-Portrait with Braid makes a fine gift for anyone who loves strong portraits of women or Mexican art. If they should pick the size themselves, give them a wall art voucher.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the original today?
In the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection, which also holds works by Diego Rivera and other Mexican modernists.
What is on Frida Kahlo’s head?
Her own hair, plaited into a thick braid that forms two interlocking loops above her head.
Is it a print?
No. It is a hand-painted copy, built up layer by layer by our painter in oil colours on canvas.
How big is the original?
It is 51 cm high and 38.7 cm wide; our nearest size is the smallest, 40 x 51 cm.
Can I order a different size?
Yes, in the width and height you choose, with the price given in advance.
How long does it take?
15 to 45 working days of painting, then we ship; no customs within the EU.
Does it suit a bedroom?
Very well, as it is calm and light; 58 x 75 or 73 x 94 cm looks good above a bed.
What does the painting mean?
There is no single reading; we see the painter shortly after her second wedding to Rivera, with a traditional hairstyle, jewellery and plants.
- Subject: Frida Kahlo to the shoulders, with a tall looped braid, a stone necklace and large green leaves round her bare shoulders.
- Original: 1941, oil on masonite, 51 x 38.7 cm, Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection.
- Ours: oil on canvas, painted by hand once you order; 8 portrait sizes from 40 x 51 to 147 x 193 cm, or made to measure.
- Worth knowing: It was painted the year after Kahlo and Diego Rivera married for the second time.
