Francis Bacon: Shadows

'Truly fascinating … As always, the diaries, first-hand sources and technical analyses prove the most engrossing parts of this valuable project' - Jackdaw Magazine

A collection of essays on diverse topics, interpretative as well as factual, which cumulatively present an abundance of fresh ideas and information about Bacon.

Martin Harrison opens the book with some hitherto unseen Bacon-related photographs and includes a tribute to the great Bacon scholar, David Boxer (1946-2017). Christopher Bucklow turns his attention to the contrast between Bacon's art and the art of our own times, setting Bacon in the context of Romantic Modernism's confidence in the unconscious as a source. Amanda Harrison's essay explores imagery in Bacon's paintings that relates to esoteric, mythological and alchemical themes, while Stefan Haus draws on the ideas of philosophers from Plato to Hegel to consider the impact of Bacon's art.

Hugh Davies's unexpurgated 1973 Bacon Diaries are published here in their entirety for the first time, revealing a more complete view of Bacon as both man and artist. Sophie Pretorius examines Tate's Barry Joule Archive, a collection of working materials and drawings attributed to Bacon. Finally, Martin Harrison explores Francis Bacon's Lost Paintings - works Bacon dubbed 'failures', but preserved by his Estate and published here for the very first time.

Details

• Author: Martin Harrison
• Paperback: 176 pages | 120 illustrations
• Date published: June 2021
• Language: English
• ISBN: 978-0500971154
• Dimensions: 26.6 x 20.6 cm