Title Being Frida
Year 2000 (Date of print 2026)
Medium Archival inkjet print on Hahnemühle Fine Art Pearl paper
Dimensions 40.6 x 30.5 cm
Edition Limited Edition of 250, of which 125 were made available to Tate. Signed and numbered on the front.
The photograph depicts Tracey Emin channelling Frida Kahlo reclining in bed. Due to chronic illness and multiple surgeries, Kahlo spent extended periods confined to bed where she continued to create art and was occasionally photographed, making the bed a recurring motif in her life and visual legacy.
When Mary McCartney invited Emin to sit for a portrait and a shoot, portraying someone she admires, the two artists discovered a shared affinity with Kahlo and a mutual connection to the symbolism of the bed.
This symbolism is evident in McCartney’s photograph Mum’s Side of the Bed, 1996, and Emin’s installation My Bed, 1998. Reflecting on the setting, McCartney explained: ‘I love the intimacy of bedrooms. It’s where you feel your safest, it’s where you’re at your most vulnerable.’
Each artwork is signed and numbered by Mary McCartney on the front. Edition numbers 1 to 126 were made available exclusively for the Tate to sell on the occasion of the Tate Modern Summer 2026 exhibition Frida – The Making Of An Icon, in which the original portrait photograph appears.
