Imagine being a 13-year-old artist and having your work exhibited in honor of a groundbreaking recreation of a 1937 Vogue cover featuring Frida Kahlo. That’s exactly what happened to Bella Pincus, a teenager growing up in New York City with a former fashion stylist as her mom, Ana Pincus. After seeing Bella’s artwork, a family friend and photographer named Brian Bowen Smith, had the idea to shoot Bella as Frida Kahlo and then have her paint over the images. Ultimately, Bella and Brian’s collaborative efforts landed them an exhibition in Malibu at the Malibu Lumberyard, which opened in March and closes this weekend.

Regarding the major accomplishment, Bella expressed to Teen Vogue, “at first I was so surprised that he wanted to do that, but it feels so great.”

Reflecting on the total experience, Bella explained, “I did some research on [Frida Kahlo’s] work and all of her work had a lot of nature and animals so I [painted] the flowers and parrots. I was inspired by her work and wanted to keep her authenticity.” While channeling Frida’s 1937 Vogue cover, in which the artist wears one of her classic flower crowns, and some of Frida’s other self-portraits, Bella had the opportunity to tell a story through her art. She even worked with her art teacher to come up with a special artistic technique using old tissue paper and framing.

At only 13, Bella already knows she wants to be an artist when she’s older. And this experience was a “super nice kick start to that career.” While the exhibit was housed in Malibu, Bella wishes her friends in New York could see it, too. Still, one special person in her life did get to be a part of it — her mom. For the collaborative project, Ana styled the shoot, which Bella says was “super nice”. To create Bella’s Frida Kahlo-inspired look, Ana borrowed threads from her friends including embroidered dresses and tailored suits that resemble the lauded artist’s self-portraits.

In the future, Bella’s dream would be to have her own studio that’s big enough to paint on a 10 foot canvas. She’s also working on creating things inspired by nature, “I’ve been super into trying to recreate how the water looks.” We can’t wait to see all the work that this young artist is going to create.

See all the photos from their collaboration below and if you’re in Los Angeles, you can catch the work in person at their closing reception on May 25.

Brian Bowen Smith Copyright 2018. All rights reserved.

Brian Bowen Smith Copyright 2018. All rights reserved.

Brian Bowen Smith