Second Version Of Study For Bullfight No. 1
Second Version Of Study For Bullfight No. 1
Signed Print
Francis Bacon
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85 x 65cm, Edition of 150, Lithograph
Medium: Lithograph
Edition size: 150
Year: 1990
Size: H 85cm x W 65cm
Signed: Yes
Format: Signed Print
Last Auction: February 2024
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Meaning & Analysis
Study For Bullfight (central panel) is part of an infamous trio of bullfight studies by Francis Bacon finished in 1990. Each panel depicts an ominous bull with monstrous horns charging at a matador in the centre of the bullring. Contained in a fiery orange interior, the bull and matador are rendered in bruise-like tones of black and purple. They are fused together to express the intensity of the relationship between human and beast.
Bacon throughout his life was fascinated by animals. But also, with the animalistic traits in humans. He believed that civilisation and the way that humans behaved with others was only a thin veneer masking the animalistic instincts of humankind. The sport of bullfighting was a key interest for Bacon as the grandeur and macho prestige was a spectacle of mortality.
This signed central panel is part of an edition size of 150. It is the least detailed of the three. The ring extends out of the picture plane as if potentially placing the viewer within the ring. A panel painted in eggshell extending upwards from the right side of the ring is left blank drawing the viewer's eye towards the action in the centre. The energetic movement of the bull lunging towards the matador is suggested in the white trail of hoof marks in the foreground of the sandy ring.
Irish-born artist, Francis Bacon, has produced some of the most famous paintings in the British Contemporary canon. The 20th century maverick's visceral and emotionally charged canvases redefined figurative art. Exploring harrowing themes of trauma, sexuality, religion and violence, Bacon forces the viewer to confront the human psyche and the dark realities of human emotion. Often working from memory or his own imagination, there is a clear morphing of influences on Bacon’s work. An unusual combination of imagery is the result of his exposure to canonical artists such as Velazquez, Picasso and Rembrandt alongside his exploration of medical textbooks and photographic stills.
