''Frieda and Diego Rivera'' (''Frieda y Diego Rivera'' in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

) is a 1931 oil painting by

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

artist

Frida Kahlo Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (; 6 July 1907 – 13 July 1954) was a Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by the country's popular culture, ...

. This portrait was created two years after Frida Kahlo and

Diego Rivera Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez, known as Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957), was a prominent Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the ...

married, and is widely considered a wedding portrait.''Frieda y Diego Rivera'', Frida Kahlo Fans
/ref> The painting shows Kahlo standing next to her husband and fellow artist, Rivera. Rivera, portrayed as a painter, holds a palette and four brushes in his right hand while Kahlo tilts her head towards him. Both are looking out toward the viewer, unsmiling. Kahlo holds her bright red shawl with her left hand. Rivera and Kahlo hold hands in the center of the portrait. Rivera is physically much larger than Kahlo. The pigeon or dove at the upper right carries a banner that reads: "Aquí nos veis, a mí, Frida Kahlo, junto con mi amado esposo Diego Rivera. Pinté estos retratos en la bella ciudad de San Francisco, California, para nuestro amigo Mr. Albert Bender y fue en el mes de abril del año 1931" ("Here you see us, me Frieda Kahlo, with my dearest husband Diego Rivera. I painted these pictures in the delightful city of San Francisco California for our companion Mr. Albert Bender, and it was in the month of April of the year 1931.”) The work had been commissioned by

Albert M. Bender Albert Maurice Bender (June 18, 1866 – March, 4 1941) was an German-American art collector who was one of the leading patrons of the arts in San Francisco in the 1920s and 1930s. He played a key role in the early career of Ansel Adams and w ...

, an art collector and supporter of Rivera. There are many interpretations of the work. Hayden Herrera, author of '' Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo'' (1983), interprets the work simply as Kahlo depicting herself as the wife of the great artist, Rivera. Other authors, such as Margaret Lindauer, investigate the larger context in which the work was created. The banner is supportive of Lindauer's interpretation because it places Kahlo in the producer/professional artist role. In 1936 Bender gave the painting to the

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is a modern and contemporary art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art, and was ...

(SFMOMA) in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, where it forms part of the permanent collection and is generally on public display.

See also

References

Further reading