Frank Auerbach Art for Sale: Prints & Originals

Frank Helmut Auerbach was born in Berlin to Jewish parents in 1931. At the age of seven, he was sent to England to escape Nazi persecution. In 1942, his parents died in the Auschwitz concentration camp. This early trauma would profoundly shape Auerbach's life and artistic approach.

Auerbach's artistic journey began at Bunce Court School, a boarding school for Jewish refugees in Kent. Here, he found solace in art, developing a passion that would define his life's work. In 1948, he moved to London to study at Saint Martin's School of Art, followed by the Royal College of Art.

It was during this formative period that Auerbach encountered David Bomberg, whose classes at Borough Polytechnic would have a lasting impact on his approach to painting. Bomberg's bold approach to form and structure in art resonated with Auerbach, influencing his developing style.

Auerbach's distinctive artistic voice began to take shape in the 1950s, characterised by heavily worked canvases and a dedication to a limited range of subjects. He established a rigorous routine, working every day in his Camden Town studio, which he has occupied since 1954. This unwavering commitment to his craft and his subjects has become a hallmark of his practice.

The artist's work is primarily focused on portraiture and urban landscapes, with a particular emphasis on the area around his London studio. Auerbach's portraits are notable for their intense scrutiny of the sitter, often resulting from hundreds of sittings and countless reworkings. His landscapes, particularly those of building sites in post-war London, capture the city's state of flux and renewal.

Auerbach's unique style is characterised by thick, impasto layers of paint, applied with such vigour that the canvas itself becomes part of the work's texture. This approach creates a sense of physicality and presence in his paintings, reflecting the artist's belief in the importance of direct observation and experience.

Throughout his career, Auerbach has been associated with the School of London, a group of figurative painters including Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, and Leon Kossoff. While not a formal movement, these artists shared a commitment to figurative painting at a time when abstraction dominated the art world.

Auerbach's work has gained increasing recognition over the decades. In 1986, he represented Britain at the Venice Biennale, and in 2001, he was the subject of a major retrospective at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. Despite his success, Auerbach has maintained a modest lifestyle, dedicated solely to his art.

On 11 November 2024, Auerbach died at the age of 93.

Auerbach's work demonstrates a profound connection to art history, frequently referencing Old Masters including Rembrandt, Titian, and Rubens. His 1994 exhibition at the National Gallery in London underscored this relationship, featuring pieces inspired by iconic works such as Titian's Bacchus and Ariadne and Rubens' Samson and Delilah. In works like Head of E.O.W.IV, Auerbach channels Rembrandt's rugged, thickly layered brushstrokes, using “swathes upon swathes” of paint to create emotive, textured portraits that reject traditional realism, instead emphasising the medium’s expressive potential.
Auerbach's practice is defined by his relentless return to the same subjects, be they people or places. This repetition allows him to delve deeper into his subjects, uncovering new aspects with each iteration. For Auerbach, familiarity breeds not contempt, but insight. His long-term sitters, such as Juliet Yardley Mills (J.Y.M.) and Estella Olive West (E.O.W.), become not just subjects, but collaborators in his artistic process.
Bowie owned Auerbach’s Head Of Gerda Boehm, a prized work in his private collection. After Bowie's passing in 2016, the piece sold for £3.8 million at auction. Bowie had a deep personal connection with Auerbach’s work, stating in a 1998 interview that the portrait could validate his feelings of depression or evoke a "triumph" of artistic expression. He described Auerbach as an artist whose work deeply resonated with his own emotional and creative journey.