6 underrated paintings by Frida Kahlo that need more recognition

Frida Kahlo, the woman who made quite a name for herself in a majorly men-dominated field, is celebrated even today for her exceptional themes and work. Her paintings were personal, poignant, wholesome at times, and filled with despair at the others. Her life too was filled with personal problems, be it love or health, and it showed in her art.
Here we mention 6 underrated paintings by Frida that need more love and recognition.

A very underrated painting by Frida Kahlo is ‘Without Hope’. The painting shows her in a rather weak, fragile state as she is bedridden and is being force-fed a weird concoction that hangs from the bed. The painting shows a skeletal Frida who lies helpless on the bed, her mouth forced open as she ingests food into her body to keep her alive. The painting, although dark and harrowing, shows an important part of Frida’s life, one she overcame, and her use of colours, which are subtle and soft, also show her state of that time.

This is another underrated painting by Kahlo and remains underrated even after being a self-portrait, which are generally very famous. This painting shows Frida on the US-Mexico border, and is divided - on the left there is the depiction of Mexico's natural beauty and cultural richness, and on the right, is the industrialisation that ran rampant in the US.

Frida, between these two, stands wearing a beautiful pink dress, cigarette in one hand, and a Mexican flag in the other.

Another lesser-known painting is a tribute to Dorothy Hale, an actress who died by suicide. Frida created a very natural, raw, and emotional portrait of Hale, as she falls down a hotel engulfed in clouds, and then lies on the ground, blood all around her. This painting definitely deserves more recognition because instead of trying to portray a harrowing sight in the subtle forms like other artists do, Frida exuded her natural, untamed energy into the portrait.

Another underrated self-portrait is this one. Frida had a short romance with Leon, when she was with Diego, but she quickly grew tired of him and the duo parted ways. But this painting was a birthday gift to Leon, and a self-portrait that showed her in a beautiful feminine light. She wears a beautiful dress, stands elegantly and confidently in front of, has flowers in her hair, and the painting just screams elegance and love.

In ‘The Dream’, Frida paints herself sleeping on a floating bed, and above her is a skeletal figure that is looking downwards onto Frida. Surprisingly, while Frida lies in a plain bed with a dying creeper, the skeleton above has lush flowers and leaves.
It is a painting with soft, subtle colours, and a dramatic background with shades of white, gray, and black.

A very unusual painting for Frida’s palette, this one shows coconuts that are crying tears. Frida gave the coconuts a human-like personality and trait, and made them cry possible to represent her inner turmoil and the sadness she felt on not being able to do justice with her craft. The still-life painting of a basket of fruits was made more personal, and thought-provoking by adding the ‘Weeping Coconuts’. (Paintings from: Frida Kahlo/Org)