Francis Bacon's body turns out to be Lucian Freud's in self-portrait


27 mei 2012

Experts at Christie's conclude 1964 Bacon painting is of two artists not one after studying photos of both men from the time.

The head may unquestionably be Francis Bacon in this 1964 self-portrait but the body has never looked right. That is because from the neck down, it revealed, it is Lucian Freud.

Experts at the auction house Christie's made the discovery about Study for Self-portrait ahead of its planned sale in next month's London sales of postwar and contemporary art.

After studying John Deakin photographs of Bacon and Freud, Christie's concluded that the body in the work must be Bacon's friend Freud.

It is "an exciting new discovery", said Francis Outred, head of post-war and contemporary art at Christie's, and the only self-portrait of its kind. "It is a rare painting from the height of Bacon and Freud's relationship, paying tribute to the creative and emotional proximity both felt for a time."

The painting, described by Christie's as "poignant and exceptionally intimate", is estimated at £20m. It is one of only 12 floor-length self-portraits by Bacon, four of which are in museum collections including the National Museum of Wales, the Modern at Fort Worth in Texas, the Hirshhorn in Washington, and the Van der Heydt museum in Wuppertal.


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