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The portrait of Selma von der Heydt is rarely exhibited because it was painted with pastels on cardboard and is therefore very sensitive to light. In addition to the portrait of Selma von der Heydt, the Von der Heydt Museum owns another pastel drawing by the artist Alexander Frenz, which shows her husband, August von der Heydt, but is much less detailed. Both works on paper came into the museum's collection from the estate of his son, Eduard von der Heydt.

Alexander Frenz was born in Rheydt on the Lower Rhine and trained at the Düsseldorf Academy of Art. He then went to Munich to study with Franz von Lenbach, but soon returned to Düsseldorf. He became known as a Symbolist painter and received commissions for murals in public buildings and private homes, including in Elberfeld and for the Elberfeld Theatre. It was probably in this context that Frenz came into personal contact with the von der Heydt family and painted the portrait of Selma von der Heydt.

The sitter, who was 29 at the time, is shown in a three-quarters length portrait, her face framed by loosely pinned up hair with individual fine forelocks. Her open gaze looks past the viewer into the distance. A small, glossy ear ornament draws the observer's attention to her face, which is shown in much more detail than her upper body. Slightly rotated, she has been moved sideways into the picture: her left shoulder is in the foreground, her left arm is bent and her hand is resting loosely and relaxed on her décolleté. She is wearing a light grey, semi-transparent dress with a white-transparent flounced collar and a yellow bunch of roses. The background is a neutral pale pink. The elaborate decorative frame is somewhat at odds with the work's character as a preliminary study for a painting. It can be assumed that this is the original frame in which the work, and by extension the sitter, was also honoured in the private home of the von der Heydt family.

On the opposite side of the room are two bronze busts. They represent Selma von der Heydt's husband, August von der Heydt, and her son, Eduard von der Heydt. This first room brings together the three most important patrons of the museum. In recognition of their efforts, the Municipal Museum was renamed the Von der Heydt Museum in 1961.