A new exhibition dedicated to Frida Kahlo opened in the Italian city of Milan on Thursday. The Mexican painter is renowned for her self-portraits and bold artworks depicting events from her life and home country. Now fans can find out more about her sources of inspiration.

The title of the new exhibition at the MUDEC museum in Milan sums up the aims of the curator, "Frida Kahlo, Beyond the Myth."

"This is what the exhibit wants to shed light on: Frida Kahlo as an artist – so for once we try to set aside the figure of Frida Kahlo as a woman and as the wife of Diego Rivera to narrate her role as a precursor in terms of style and in her choice of themes in art history," exhibition curator Diego Sileo explains.

Many self-portraits depict her conscious search for the ego, but other themes like resilience and suffering are also very present in pieces.

"In order to explain and have the visitor understand the themes and new elements shown, we often associated photographs, drawings and documents with her works," Sileo says. "These can become extra tools for understanding the painting. I was often able to find material, for the most part on display for the first time, that can portray her relationship with the artwork. Indeed the relationships presented with photographs, drawings and letters are the most interesting academically and scientifically in Kahlo's artwork. 

"For her it wasn't just her country but her natural environment. That's why a big section of the exhibit is dedicated to this relationship – not only organically, with still life paintings, but also with the context and society of Mexico, with portraits of Mexican people that surrounded her, friends, colleagues, family members, patrons. Because this was also a way for her to tell people about her Mexico."

A secondary exhibit, "Dreaming with the ancestors, Mexican Archaeology in Frida Kahlo's Art and Life," illustrates how both the indigenous world and the pre-Colombian past were paramount in her artistic vision.

"Frida Kahlo, Beyond the Myth" runs till June 3 at the MUDEC museum in Milan.