What is the title of Frida Kahlo’s 1944 painting showing her body split around a broken column?

Frida Kahlo’s 1944 painting showing her body split around a broken column is The Broken Column.

The Broken Column is an oil-on-Masonite self-portrait in which Kahlo stands against a barren landscape. An opening in her torso reveals a fractured classical column in place of her spine. Nails cover her body, and a medical corset encircles her waist, making the painting a stark image of physical pain and enforced treatment.

Kahlo made the work after spinal surgery. The column is commonly interpreted as a symbol of her damaged spine, while the nails recall religious images of martyrdom and intensify the sense of suffering. Her upright pose and direct gaze also communicate endurance rather than simple defeat.

The title is sometimes confused with Henry Ford Hospital, another Kahlo painting dealing with injury and medical trauma. Henry Ford Hospital dates from 1932 and focuses on pregnancy loss, whereas The Broken Column centers on Kahlo’s spinal condition and the body’s support.