Born in Dublin to English parents, Francis Bacon’s childhood was marked by a succession of moves between Ireland, London, Berlin, and Paris. It was in Paris, in 1927, that he experienced a profound moment of inspiration, which made an indelible impact on his work, at the Picasso exhibition held by the Paul Rosenberg Gallery.
Upon returning to London, the young Bacon decided to move to South Kensington with his former nursemaid, Jessie Lightfoot, and Eric Allden, his partner and first patron. However, it was his beloved Soho neighborhood that truly inspired Bacon’s work: from Wheeler’s, the seafood restaurant on Old Compton Street where he was a regular, to the Colony Room on Dean Street, the Gargoyle Club, the French House, and Charlie Chester’s Casino.
Before fully dedicating himself to painting, Bacon’s early creative explorations were expressed through interior design, partly inspired by Eileen Gray, Charlotte Perriand, and Le Corbusier. These influences later resurfaced in his paintings, notably seen in his affinity for mirrors, tubular steel furniture, curtains, and tassels. In 1930, Bacon held his first exhibition, showcasing furniture, rugs, and paintings at 17 Queensberry Mews West, London.
Two years later, in 1932, he met Eric Hall, who would become his second partner and patron until the late 1940s.
In 1933, Bacon painted his first Crucifixion, drawing significant influence from Picasso’s crucifixion group at Boisgeloup. This artwork was featured in Herbert Read’s publication Art Now in that same year. Crucifixion was subsequently sold by Douglas Cooper, via the Mayor Gallery, to the renowned collector Michael Sadler. Ironically, this transaction created expectations for the young painter’s future work, despite a period of low output between 1936 and 1944.
It wasn’t until 1944 that Bacon fully returned to painting, unveiling Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion, a triptych that caused a sensation in the London art scene when exhibited the following year at the Lefevre Gallery.
In 1946, after selling Painting 1946 to Erica Brausen for £200, Bacon used the proceeds to settle in Munich. In 1948, Brausen became his art dealer and helped him achieve a significant career milestone by securing the purchase of his work for the Museum of Modern Art in New York, through Alfred Barr.
During these years in Munich, Bacon began pictorial experiments with papal figures, all inspired by Diego Velázquez’s Portrait of Innocent X, now part of the Doria-Pamphilj collection in Rome. In 1949, Erica Brausen organized an exhibition for Bacon at the Hanover Gallery, and the same year the artist completed Head VI.
More generally, from the late 1940s, Bacon tackled some of his major themes: he painted series on the Popes, the Men in Blue, and the Primates, as well as portraits inspired by William Blake’s Funeral Mask, landscapes reminiscent of the French Riviera, and early self-portraits. Thanks to the Hanover Gallery, Bacon’s work was exhibited in France, Italy, and the United States.
In 1955, the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London mounted the first exhibition dedicated solely to him. In March 1957, Bacon exhibited his Van Gogh series at the Hanover Gallery in London. These paintings, inspired by The Painter on the Road to Tarascon (1888), are characterized by a more vibrant palette and bolder brushstrokes compared to Bacon’s previously somber work.
In October 1958, Bacon suddenly left the Hanover Gallery and joined Marlborough Fine Art. Founded by Frank Lloyd and Harry Fischer, and later joined by David Somerset in 1947, Marlborough Fine Art pledged to launch the artist’s international reputation. Their efforts paid off, culminating in Bacon’s first major exhibition at the Tate Gallery in May 1962. During this period, Marlborough Fine Art represented artists including Henry Moore, Frank Auerbach, Lucian Freud, and Graham Sutherland. The Tate exhibition showcased ninety-two paintings, including several created specifically for the occasion, such as the new Three Studies for a Crucifixion series (1962).
In October 1971, a new exhibition opened at the Grand Palais in Paris. Just as had happened a decade earlier when Peter Lacy, Bacon’s then lover, passed away shortly before the opening, history repeated itself with the loss of his new companion, George Dyer. Devastated by this loss, Bacon created, between 1971 and 1973, the Black Triptychs.
In 1974, Bacon moved again, this time to Paris, settling in a studio apartment at 14 rue de Birague in the historic Marais district. The following year, he met art historian Eddy Batache and art consultant Reinhard Hassert, who would become two of his closest friends and confidants until the end of his life. Bacon’s first exhibition in Paris was in 1977 at Galerie Claude Bernard. This now-legendary show was so successful that police had to cordon off rue des Beaux-Arts to control the crowds heading to the gallery. Subsequent exhibitions at Galerie Maeght-Lelong in 1984 and Galerie Lelong in 1987 further cemented Bacon’s status as a living legend in the French capital. His work also fascinated intellectuals, writers, and philosophers such as Gilles Deleuze, Michel Leiris, Gilbert Lascault, and Jean Clair.
Bacon remained in the Paris studio until 1987, when he began spending more time in Madrid, following his friend José Capelo. Meanwhile, in 1985, a second exhibition was held at the Tate Gallery.
During his final year, Bacon’s health declined due to asthma and the aftereffects of kidney cancer surgery he had undergone in 1989. In April 1992, he traveled once again to Madrid to visit José Capelo. Shortly after his arrival, he fell seriously ill and was admitted to Clínica Ruber. It was there, on April 28, at the age of 82, that he died of a heart attack. Meanwhile, in London, his last major canvas remained unfinished: a self-portrait. In tribute, Sir Nicholas Serota, then director of the Tate Gallery, proclaimed, “Francis Bacon was not only the greatest British painter of his generation, but he was also internationally recognized as one of the leading artists of the postwar period.”
