NEW YORK – A self-portrait by legendary Mexican artist Frida Kahlo sold for $54.66 million at Sotheby’s in New York on Thursday, setting a new record for the most expensive painting by a woman ever sold at auction. The 1940 artwork, El sueño (la cama), or The Dream (The Bed), surpasses the previous record held by American artist Georgia O’Keeffe, whose 1932 painting Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1 sold for $44.4 million in 2014.
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The painting, created during a pivotal decade in Kahlo’s career, depicts the artist lying in a bed that seems to float among clouds, beneath a skeleton with legs bound by sticks of dynamite. Sotheby’s described the work as “very personal,” merging Mexican folkloric motifs with European surrealist elements, though Kahlo herself did not fully embrace the surrealist label.
Anna Di Stasi, head of Latin American art at Sotheby’s, emphasized that the painting reflects Kahlo’s tumultuous relationship with Diego Rivera while showcasing her distinctive iconography and symbolic imagery. The artwork was estimated to sell for between $40 million and $60 million, and the buyer’s identity was not disclosed.
‘El sueño (La cama)’ by Frida Kahlo soars to $54.7 million, becoming the most valuable work by a woman artist ever sold at auction.
Painted in 1940 during a pivotal decade in her career, marked by her turbulent relationship with Diego Rivera. pic.twitter.com/t6Sni7fIKT
— Sotheby’s (@Sothebys) November 21, 2025
The record-setting sale follows another high-profile auction by Sotheby’s, in which Austrian artist Gustav Klimt’s Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer fetched $236.4 million, becoming the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction. The most expensive remains Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which sold for $450 million in 2017.
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Kahlo, who passed away in 1954 at age 47, has long been celebrated for her deeply personal and culturally resonant works. This record sale cements her status not only as a seminal figure in Mexican art but also as one of the most valuable women artists in the global market.