Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird by Frida Kahlo

Although Frida Kahlo didn't come from formal art training, she developed a powerful visual language rooted in her Mexican heritage and personal experience. Influenced by Mexican folk art, indigenous culture, and Catholic symbolism, her paintings reflect a deep national pride as well as a complex inner world. When André Breton, one of the founders of Surrealism, claimed her work belonged to the movement, Kahlo famously rejected the label, stating, "I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality." Her art wasn’t born from theory — it came from the body, the heart, and her lived experience.