Follow our Conservation Display Specialists on a design journey to create a visual interpretation of Kahlo, unique to the exhibition 'Frida Kahlo: Making Her Self Up'.
Fashion mannequins play a vital role in supporting exhibition design, and evoking a sense of the wearer. Displaying Frida Kahlo's wardrobe for the first-time in the UK required a bespoke approach to mannequin design. Each one of the Frida Kahlo figures was custom-designed and built from scratch, inspired by a range of visual references, including photographs of the artist, measurements taken from her clothing, and even her paintings. The final Kahlo mannequins are the result of experimentation, collaboration with some of the best mannequin manufacturers in the world, and a range of innovative techniques, including 3D rendering and 3D printing – the digital equivalent of sculpting in clay.
