Francis Bacon
(1909 - 1992)
Francis Bacon was born to an English family in Dublin, Ireland, in 1909. He moved to London at the age of 16. In 1927, Bacon travelled to Berlin and Paris. He began to draw and paint while attending the free Academies. Upon his return to London, Bacon earned a living as a furniture and interior designer, while painting in a studio shared with Jean Shepeard and Roy de Maistre. Without extensive formal training, de Maistre was an important early influence on Bacon, and practical guide on matters of technique.
While Bacon exhibited his paintings within group shows during the 1930’s, it was not until after World War II that his career as a fulltime artist began. From his time during the war, working with the Air Raid Precautions division, Bacon experienced first-hand the ruins of bomb-sites. This seems to have prompted more concentrated and visceral imagery in his paintings, often seen as a reflection of the anxiety of the modern condition.
Bacon’s first post-war solo exhibition included the primary example of many works inspired by Velazquez’s Portrait of Pope Innocent X, 1650, and showed his use of characteristic enclosing frameworks. It was these paintings of Popes, which cemented Bacon’s reputation. Other series include portraits of contemporary figures, sphinxes, animals, and wrestlers. Later works were often in triptych, but the figures grew calmer and were set against flat expanses of color.
Since his first exhibition in 1934, the artist has been exhibited widely. Bacon has been the subject of three solo shows at the Tate, London, in 1962, 1985, 2008. The first retrospective traveled to Mannheim, Turin, Zurich, and Amsterdam. In 1963 he had an exhibition at the Guggenheim in New York, which later travelled to Chicago. A 1965 show in Hamburg also toured Stockholm, and Dublin. The Grand Palais, Paris, hosted a 1971 retrospective, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in 1975. International exhibitions were also held in Marseilles (1976), Mexico and Caracas (1977), Madrid and Barcelona (1978), Tokyo (1983), Basel (1987), Washington D.C. (1989). More recently in Milan (2007), Edinburgh and Hamburg (2008), and Dublin (2009-10). Bacon died on 28 April, 1992.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2022
Francis Bacon: Faces & Figures, Skarstedt, New York
Francis Bacon: The First Pope, Gagosian, London
Francis Bacon: Man & Beast, The Royal Academy of Arts, London
2019
Francis Bacon: Couplings, Gagosian, London
2018
Bacon's Women, Ordovas, New York
2017
Francis Bacon/Bruce Naumann: Face to Face, Musée Fabre, Montpellier, France
2016
Francis Bacon: Invisible Rooms, Tate, Liverpool, United Kingdom; Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, Germany
Francis Bacon, Monaco and French Culture, Grimaldi Forum, Monaco; Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain
2015
Francis Bacon: Late Paintings, Gagosian, New York
FB55, Institute of Contemporary Art, London, United Kingdom
2014
Francis Bacon / Henry Moore: Flesh and Bone, Oxford, Ashmolean, United Kindom; Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada
Francis Bacon and the Art of the Past, Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia; Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich, United Kingdom
2013
Movement and Gravity: Bacon and Rodin in Dialogue, Ordovas, London, United Kingdom
National Museum of Art, Tokyo. Traveled to Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, Toyota, Japan
2012
The Grotesque Factor, Museo Picasso Malaga, Malaga, Spain
Francis Bacon: Five Decades, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
2009-10
Francis Bacon: A Terrible Beauty, Dubin City Gallery, Dublin; traveled to Compton Verney, Warwickshire, United Kingdom under the title Francis Bacon: In Camera
2008-9
Francis Bacon, Tate Britain, London, United Kingdom; traveled to Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, Spain; and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
2007
Palazzo Reale, Milan, Italy
2006
Francis Bacon: Bilder des Widerspruchs, Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Siegen, Germany
Francis Bacon: Triptychs, Gagosian Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Paintings from the 1950s, Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, University of East Anglia, Norwich travelled to Milwaukee Art Museum, Wisconsin, Albright-Knox Art Museum, Buffalo, New York
Francis Bacon: The Violence of the Real, K20 Kunstsammlung, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, Germany
2005
Francis Bacon: Portraits and Heads, National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh; travelled to Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany
Francis Bacon: Studying Form, Faggionato Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
2004
The Sacred and the Profane, IVAM, Valencia; travelled to Musée Maillol, Fondation Dina Vierny, Paris, France
2003
Francis Bacon and the Tradition of Art, Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna, Austria; travelled to Fondation Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland
Francis Bacon: Caged Uncaged, Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Serralves, Porto, Portugal
2002
Francis Bacon: Last Paintings, Faggionato Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Paintings, Tony Shafrazi Gallery, New York
Van Gogh vu par Bacon, Fondation Vincent Van-Gogh-Arles, Arles, France
Francis Bacon: Paintings, Marlborough Gallery, New York
2001
Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, The Hague, The Netherlands
Francis Bacon’s Studio, Dublin City Gallery, Dublin, Ireland
2000
Francis Bacon in Dublin, Dublin City Gallery, Dublin, Ireland
1999
Francis Bacon: The Papal Portraits of 1953, Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, California
Francis Bacon: A Retrospective, The Yale Centre for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut; traveled to The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, California; Museum of Modern Art, Fort Worth, Texas
Francis Bacon: Works on Paper, Tate Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Paintings from The Estate 1980-1991, Faggionato Fine Arts, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Papes et Autres Figures, Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
1998
Louisiana Museum, Humlebaek, Denmark
Francis Bacon: The Human Body, Hayward Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Important Paintings from The Estate, Tony Shafrazi Gallery, New York
1996
Centre Georges Pompidou, MNAM, Paris, France. Traveled to Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany
1993
Francis Bacon: Paintings 1981-1990, Marlborough Gallery, New York
Museo d’Arte Moderna, Lugano, Switzerland
Figurabile Francis Bacon, Museo Correr, XLV Biennale di Venezia, Venice, Italy
The Art of Francis Bacon 1909-1992: Small Portrait Studies, Loan Exhibition,
Marlborough, London, United Kingdom
1992
Francis Bacon: Pinturas 1981-1991, Galeria Marlborough, Madrid, Spain
1990
Francis Bacon: Paintings, Marlborough Fine Art, New York
Tate Gallery, Liverpool, United Kingdom
1989
Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
Francis Bacon: Loan Exhibition in celebration of his 80th Birthday, Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C. Traveled to Country Museum, Los Angeles, California; MoMA, New York
1988
New Tretyakov Central House of Artists, Moscow, Russia
Francis Bacon: Paintings, Marlborough Fine Art, Tokyo, Japan
1987
Francis Bacon: Paintings of the Eighties, Marlborough Gallery, New York
Francis Bacon: Retrospektive, Galerie Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland
Francis Bacon: Peintures Récentes, Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
1985
Francis Bacon: Paintings, Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
Tate Gallery, London; travelled to Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany
1984
Francis Bacon: Peintures Récentes, Galerie MaeghtLelong, Paris, France
Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings, Marlborough Gallery, New York
Francis Bacon, Thomas Gibson Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1983
Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: Paintings 1945-1982, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, Japan; traveled to National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Japan; Aiehi Prefectural Art Gallery, Nagoya, Japan
1980
Francis Bacon: Schreiender Papst 1951, Städtische Kunsthalle, Mannheim, Germany
Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings, Marlborough Gallery, New York
1978
Fundación Juan March, Madrid; Fundación Juan Miró, Barcelona, Spain
1977
Francis Bacon: Oeuvres Récentes, Galerie Claude Bernard, Paris, France
Francis Bacon: Oleos de 1970 a 1977, Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico; travelled to Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, Caracas, Venezuela
1976
Francis Bacon: Oeuvres Récentes, Musée Cantini, Marseilles, France
1975
Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings 1968-1974, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Marlborough Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
1972
Galleria del Milione, Milan, Italy
1971
Francis Bacon: Rétrospective, Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, Paris; traveled to Städtische Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf, Germany
1970
Galleria Galatea, Turin, Italy
1968
Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings, Marlborough Gerson Gallery, New York
1966
Francis Bacon: Mostra di Undici Dipinti, Galleria Toninelli Arte Moderna, Milan, Italy
Francis Bacon: Opere Recenti, Galerie Maeght, Paris, France; traveled to Marlborough Galleria d’arte, Rome, Italy; Galleria Toninelli Arte Moderna, Milan, Italy; Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom; Overes Schloss, Siegen, Germany
1965
Hamburger Kunstverein, Hamburg, Germany; travelled to Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden; Municipal Gallery of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland
"Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings, Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
1964
Contemporary Arts Association, Houston, Texas
1963
Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
Granville Gallery, New York
Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, New York; travelled to Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, Illinois
1962
Francis Bacon, Tate Gallery, London; traveled to Kunsthalle, Mannheim, Galleria Civica d’Arte Moderna, Turin, Italy; Kunsthaus, Zurich, Switzerland; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Francis Bacon, Galleria Galatea, Milan, Italy
1961
Nottingham University, Department of Fine Art, Nottingham, United Kingdom
1960
Francis Bacon: Paintings 1950-1960, Marlborough Fine Art, London, United Kingdom
1959
Hanover Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Francis Bacon: 12 Paintings 1947-1958, Richard L. Feigen Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1958
Galleria Galatea, Turin; traveled to Galleria dell’Ariete, Milan, Galleria l’Obelisco, Rome, Italy
1957
Galerie Rive Droite, Paris, France
Hanover Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1955
Paintings by Francis Bacon, ICA, London, United Kingdom
1954
Hanover Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1953
Durlacher Brothers, New York
Francis Bacon: New Paintings, Beaux-Arts Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1952
Hanover Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1951
Hanover Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1934
Transition Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1928-29
7 Queensberry Mews West, London, United Kingdom
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Astrup Fearnley Museet, Oslo, Norway
Berkeley Art Museum, University of California, CA
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX
Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI
Fonds National d'Art Contemporain, Paris, France
Fondation Beyeler, Riehen, Switzerland
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC
Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu, HI
Kunsthaus Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark
Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MS
Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden
Musée d’Art Moderne, Brussels, Belgium
Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, Brussels, Belgium
Musée des Beaux-Arts du Canada, Ottawa
Musei e Gallerie Pontificie, Musei Vaticani, Rome, Italy
Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, Bilbao, Spain
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Museum of Contemporary Art of Chicago, Chicago, IL
The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX
MoMA —The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany
Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien, Vienna, Austria
Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, Italy
Phillips Collection, Washington, DC
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA
Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Nationalgalerie, Berlin
Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Ghent, Belgium
Tate Britain, London
Tate Modern, London
Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver
Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MS
Yale University Art Center, New Haven, CT