Frida Kahlo 'Diego y yo' Breaks Records in NY Auction

A rare painting by Frida Kahlo broke the record in a New York auction house Tuesday for almost $35 million.

The self-portrait of Kahlo entitled "Diego y yo" ("Diego and me," 1949), where the face of the painter's husband Diego Rivera appears on her forehead, smashed the former record of $8 million set by the iconic Mexican artist in 2016.

"Diego y yo" is emblematic of Kahlo's self-portraits, known for their intense and enigmatic gaze that made her a feminist icon and famous around the whole world.

In the painting, Rivera's face appears on Frida's forehead, above her distinctive eyebrows and dark eyes from which a few teardrops fall.

The depiction of Rivera, who at the time was close to Mexican actress Maria Felix, as a third eye symbolizes the extent to which he tormented her thoughts, art experts say.

Kahlo and Rivera married each other twice. She died aged just 47 in 1954. "Diego y yo" last sold at Sotheby's for $1.4 million in 1990.

In 2002, Mexican-American actress Salma Hayek played the leading role in "Frida" which revolved around the artist's biopic which has been one of the most talked-about and fought-over projects in Hollywood.

"What I respond to with Frida is her courage to be unique; her courage to be different," Salma Hayek said. "She lived her life exactly as she wanted and never apologised."

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