Fact or Fiction...?

There seems to be a lot of controversy surrounding a 1938 or 1939 French edition of Vogue magazine that features Frida Kahlo on the cover. I have been researching the life and art of Frida Kahlo since 2003. During my research I have read numerous accounts in books, magazines and internet articles about this elusive magazine cover. Some say it was just an image of her hands adorned with several rings while other say it was a full image of her based on a photograph taken by Nickolas Muray. Personally…I think it's a myth….it never existed. I have spent hours searching for the magazine cover and have not found it anywhere. Of all the accounts I've read no one has been able to produce an image of the magazine cover…and many also admit they too have searched endlessly for it and never found it. The one pictured below was produced in conjunction with the 2003 Miramax film "Frida"….the subject in this mockup cover is Salma Hayek as "Frida Kahlo".

If anyone knows the whereabouts of an image of the French Vogue that features Kahlo on the cover, or if anyone knows anything about this magazine cover please contact me. Thanks, Mike, Site Webmaster, Sacramento, CA, USA. Send Email

In my research I did find that photos of Frida appeared in the October 1, 1937 edition of the U.S. version of Vogue.

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The September 1931 edition of Vanity Fair magazine contained a photo of Frida and Diego and an article about Diego's work as a muralist.

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The December 1990 edition of the American Airline magazine, American Way, feathered a photograph of Frida Kahlo on its cover and a 14 page article titled "The Cult of Kahlo" with several photos of Kahlo and her paintings.