Born here, married here, painted and died here: fifty years of Frida's life in one house
Few artists are as closely tied to a single building as Frida Kahlo is to the Casa Azul. She was born in it, grew up in it, shared it with Diego Rivera, welcomed Trotsky into it, painted in its studio and died in its bedroom.
After her death, Diego made sure it would become a museum, and the rooms were kept much as she left them, which is what makes a visit so personal.
A single-storey house is built in Coyoacán, then a village outside Mexico City, for the family of the photographer Guillermo Kahlo.
Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo is born in the house on 6 July. She later gave her birth year as 1910, the year of the Mexican Revolution.
A bus accident leaves Frida with terrible injuries. During her long recovery in bed, she begins to paint.
Frida marries the muralist Diego Rivera. The couple will live in the Casa Azul, on and off, until her death.
Leon Trotsky and Natalia Sedova live in the house as guests from January 1937 to April 1939, before moving to nearby Viena Street.
Diego adds the wing on Londres Street enclosing the courtyard, and builds the garden pyramid, fountain and pool for his pre-Hispanic sculptures.
Frida Kahlo dies in the house on 13 July 1954, aged 47.
Following Diego Rivera's wishes, the house opens as the Frida Kahlo Museum, with the poet Carlos Pellicer as its first director.
A restoration of works in the collection is funded partly by the German government and partly by the museum.
Around 25,000 visitors a month make the Casa Azul one of the most visited museums in Mexico City.
Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) painted mostly self-portraits, drawing on Mexican folk art, pre-Hispanic culture and her own pain after childhood polio and the bus accident of 1925. A mirror above her bed allowed her to paint lying down during long periods of illness.
She dressed in Tehuana costume, collected Mexican crafts and filled the house with them.
The great muralist married Frida in 1929. Their marriage was famously turbulent, including a divorce and remarriage in 1940, but the Casa Azul remained their shared home.
Diego shaped the house in the 1940s and built the Anahuacalli to house his pre-Hispanic collection. Your Casa Azul ticket includes a visit there.
The museum shows paintings by Frida, including works such as 'Viva la Vida' and the portrait of her father, alongside drawings, letters and photographs. Upstairs, her studio and bedrooms keep her easel, paints, wheelchair, books and personal objects.
The kitchen displays the couple's collection of Mexican pottery, and the garden, Diego's pre-Hispanic sculpture. Her most famous paintings, however, are in other museums and private collections.
The guided museum tour is the best rated way to hear the stories behind the objects. See the tour →
The Leon Trotsky Museum on Viena Street, where he lived after leaving the Casa Azul, is a short walk away.
Open Tuesday to Sunday. Tickets from MX$320, sold online only.