May 18, 2016

Francis Bacon: Invisible Rooms at Tate Liverpool, May 18 – September 18, 2016

“Francis Bacon (1909 – 1992), the Irish-born British figurative artist, is considered a major figure of 20th-century art. Many of his iconic works feature an architectural, ghost-like framing device around his subjects. Francis Bacon: Invisible Rooms will feature approximately 30 paintings alongside a group of rarely seen drawings and documents including some of Bacon’s most powerful works, surveying the variety of Bacon’s compositions united by this common motif.

An element introduced by the artist in the 1930s, Bacon used a barely visible cubic or elliptic cage around the figures depicted to create his dramatic compositions. It is these imaginary chambers that emphasise the isolation of the represented figures and bring attention to their psychological condition; the act of placing the sitters in ‘invisible rooms’ guides the focus of attention towards the  complex human emotions that are felt but can’t be seen.” — Tate Liverpool

Portrait of Francis Bacon, c. 1962

Portrait of Francis Bacon by John Deakin, c. 1962. Gelatin silver print, 640 x 515 mm © The Estate of Francis Bacon. All rights reserved. DACS 2016. Photo: John Deakin.

francis_bacon_crucifixion_1933_1

Francis Bacon, Crucifixion, 1933 © The Estate of Francis Bacon. All rights reserved. DACS 2016. Image courtesy Murderme Collection. Photo: Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd.

francis_bacon_three_studies_for_figures_at_the_base_of_a_crucifixion_c.1944_1

Francis Bacon, Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion, c. 1944. Oil paint on 3 boards, Each: 940 x 737 mm © Tate

X00112 gv 0002

Francis Bacon, Study for a Portrait, 1952. Oil paint and sand on canvas, 661 x 561 x 18 mm © Estate of Francis Bacon. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2016.

franics_bacon_study_for_the_nurse_from_the_battleship_potemkin_1957_1

Francis Bacon, Study for the Nurse from the Battleship Potemkin, 1957. Oil paint on canvas, 1980 x 1420 mm © Estate of Francis Bacon. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2016. © Städel Museum – U. Edelmann – ARTOTHEK.

Bacon, Seated Figure, T00459

Francis Bacon, Seated Figure, 1961. Oil paint on canvas, 1651 x 1422 mm © Estate of Francis Bacon.

francis_bacon_study_for_portrait_on_folding_bed_1963_1

Francis Bacon, Study for Portrait on Folding Bed, 1963. Oil paint on canvas, 1981 x 1473 mm © Estate of Francis Bacon.

francis_bacon_from_muybridge_the_human_figure_in_motion.1965_5

Francis Bacon, From Muybridge ‘The human Figure in Motion: Woman Emptying a Bowl of Water/Paralytic Child Walking on All Fours’, 1965. Collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam © The Estate of Francis Bacon. All rights reserved. DACS 2016.

francis_bacon_three_figures_and_portrait_1975_1

Francis Bacon, Three Figures and Portrait, 1975. Oil paint and pastel on canvas, 1981 x 1473 mm © The Estate of Francis Bacon. All rights reserved. DACS 2016. Image courtesy Tate.

Images courtesy Tate Liverpool