A rare self-portrait by Mexican artist Frida Kahlo is set to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s, with an estimated price of $40 million to $60 million. The painting, “El sueño (La cama)” or “The Dream (The Bed),” could surpass the top price for a work by any female artist, currently held by Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1,” which sold for $44.4 million in 2014.
The artwork, painted in 1940, depicts Kahlo lying in a four-poster bed floating in a pale blue sky, surrounded by vines and a skeleton wired with dynamite. The image is rich in symbolism and feels like an allegory, reflecting Kahlo’s experiences with physical and emotional pain. According to Julian Dawes, vice chairman and head of impressionist and modern art for Sotheby’s Americas, “El sueño (La cama)” is a psychological self-portrait by an artist at her peak, created during a period of significant personal and artistic growth.
Kahlo’s paintings are highly sought after, with her highest price at auction being $34.9 million for “Diego and I” in 2021. Her works are known for their vibrant and unflinching depictions of her life, which was marked by a bus accident at 18 and subsequent health issues. The upcoming sale of “El sueño (La cama)” is significant not only due to its potential record-breaking price but also because it is one of the few Kahlo works outside of Mexico and not in a museum collection.
The painting is part of a larger sale of over 100 surrealist works by artists including Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, and Max Ernst. Surrealist art has seen a surge in interest and prices in recent years, with the genre’s share of the art market rising from 9.3% to 16.8% between 2018 and 2024. Kahlo’s work, while not directly labeled as surrealist, reflects her fascination with the subconscious and use of otherworldly imagery, placing her within the surrealist tradition.
The auction is set to take place on November 8, with the painting touring to Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, and Paris before the sale in New York. The sale of “El sueño (La cama)” is expected to draw significant attention from art collectors and enthusiasts, reinforcing the enduring significance of Kahlo’s work and the growing interest in surrealist art.