WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0023

Francis Bacon, Self Portrait, 1971

"I want a very ordered image, but I want it to come about by chance." (Francis Bacon)

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0022

Francis Bacon,Portrait of Peter Beard, 1975

(English)
"I believe in deeply ordered chaos. (Francis Bacon)"

Peter Beard was a photographer widely known for his pictures of Africa. Beard's acquaintances included Andy Warhol, Jackie Onassis, Lee Radziwill, Truman Capote, and Bianca Jagger. Beard had a close relationship with Francis Bacon . He photographed Bacon often and was also the model for several of Bacon's paintings.

(Italian)
"Credo profondamente nell'ordine del caos." (Francis Bacon)

Peter Beard fu un fotografo noto per le suo foto africane. Beard conoscenze includevano Andy Warhol, Jackie Onassis, Lee Radziwill, Truman Capote, e Bianca Jagger. Beard ebbe uno stretto rapporto con Francis Bacon. Fotografato spesso Bacon e servi' da modello per diversi dipinti di Bacon.

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0021

Francis Bacon, Portrait of Michel Leiris, 1976

(English)
"All colours will agree in the dark." (Francis Bacon)

Michel Leiris was a member of the Surrealist movement, and published numerous critical texts on artists he admired, including Francis Bacon, a close friend for whom he had modeled.

(Italian)
"Tutti i colori si assomigliano al buio." (Francis Bacon)

Michel Leiris fu un membro del movimento surrealista, e pubblico numerosi testi critici sugli artisti che ammirava, tra cui Francis Bacon, un caro amico per il quale aveva posato.

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0020

Francis Bacon,Study for a Portrait of Isabel Rawsthorne, 1966.

(English)
"If you can talk about it, why paint it?" (Francis Bacon)

Isabel Rawsthorne, Bacon's only female lover, was a British painter, designer and occasional artists' model. She was intimate with many members of the artistic bohemian society in which she flourished, including Jacob Epstein, Alberto Giacometti and Francis Bacon.

(Italian)
"Se puoi parlerne, perche' dipingerlo?" (Francis Bacon)

Isabel Rawsthorne, unica amante donna di Bacon, fu pittrice e occasionalmente modella. Molto vicina a vari artisti, tra cui Jacob Epstein, Alberto Giacometti e Francis Bacon.

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0019

Francis Bacon, Portrait of George Dyer, 1969

(English)
"It's always hopeless to talk about painting – one never does anything but talk around it." (Francisc Bacon)

Bacon’s relationship with George Dyer was stormy and tragic. Two days before the opening of the Francis Bacon Retrospective at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1971, Dyer was found dead from a drink and drugs overdose in the bathroom of the Hotel des Saint-Pères in Paris. Bacon painted portraits of Dyer obsessively, both during his life and after Dyer’s death. The famous Triptych May – June, 1973 confronts the moment of Dyer’s death.

(Italian)
"Parlare di un dipinto e' un'operazione senza speranza - si finisce sempre a parlare intorno al dipinto."

Il rapporto di Bacon con George Dyer fu burrascoso and si concluse in maniera tragica. Due giorni prima l'apertura della retrospettiva di Francis Bacon al Grand Palais di Parigi nel 1971, Dyer fu stato trovato morto a causa di una overdose di alcol e droghe nel bagno dell'Hotel des Saint-Peres di Parigi. Bacon dipinse ossessivamente Dyer , sia durante la sua vita e dopo la morte. Il famosissimo Trittico maggio - giugno 1973 confronta il momento della morte di Dyer.

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0018

Francis Bacon, Study for the Portrait of Lucien Freud, 1967

(English)
"The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery." (Francis Bacon)

The second of Bacon's portrait is the one of Lucian Freud. Freud was born in Berlin in 1922, the grandson of Sigmund Freud. In 1933, the family moved to London, England. By the early 1940's, Freud had begun painting full time. He is considered the greatest living realist painter.

(Italian)
"Il compito dell'artista e' rendere il mistero piu' profondo" (Francis Bacon)

Il ritratto di Bacon di oggi è quello di Lucian Freud. Freud nasce a Berlino nel 1922, il nipote di Sigmund Freud. Nel 1933, la famiglia si trasferì a Londra, Inghilterra. Dai primi anni '40, Freud si dedica alla pittura a tempo pieno. E' considerato il più grande pittore realista vivente.

WEEKS - BACON'S PORTRAITS - 0017

Francis Bacon, Portrait of Henrietta Moraes, 1969

(English)
"I would like, in my arbitrary way, to bring one nearer to the actual human being." (Francis Bacon)

This week we show a stunning series of beautiful portraits of the great British artist Francis Bacon, in my opinion some of the best portraits of the XX century. We start with the portrait of Henrietta Moraes, femme fatale, and memoirist. During the 1950s and '60s, she was the muse and inspiration for many artists of the Soho subculture, like Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon.

(Italian)
"Mi piacerebbe, in maniera arbitraria, avvicinare la gente alla realta' dell'essere umano." (Francis Bacon)

Questa settimana vi mostriamo una serie straordinaria di ritratti del grande artista inglese Francis Bacon, a mio parere tra i migliori del secolo XX. Cominciamo con il ritratto di Henrietta Moraes, femme fatale, e memorialista. Nel corso degli anni '50 e '60, fu la musa e fonte di ispirazione per molti artisti della sottocultura di Soho, tra cui Lucian Freud e Francis Bacon.