Francis Bacon [Hardcover]

Michel Leiris (Author), Francis Bacon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2008

The painting of Francis Bacon (1909-1992) defines the shattered self-image of Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War, and his wracked human figures are now basic to the twentieth century's visual lexicon. Clearing away all moral scaffolding, Bacon made room for what he called "the brutality of fact" to implode onto his canvases, paring back his subjects to animal function and bloodlust. In Bacon the figure is almost always isolated and pitched against an unforgiving interior lit only by a bare light bulb (one could write an interesting history of the light bulb in art, tracking its trajectory from, say, Van Gogh to Vuillard's lamplight, to the desolate hanging bulbs of Bacon and Philip Guston). Francis Bacon had few better critics of his work than himself--as witnessed in this superb statement of intent to David Sylvester: "What I want to do is distort the thing far beyond the appearance, but in the distortion to bring it back to a recording of the appearance." But one of the few writers whose sensibility he trusted was the French author Michel Leiris. Leiris shared Bacon's feel for nerve-end acuity in art, as his great autobiography Manhood attests, and with Bacon's sanction, wrote the essay for Poligrafa's landmark monograph of 1987, which also included a selection of 240 key paintings made by Bacon himself. That volume, an essential text for Bacon fans and scholars, is here revised and reprinted for the first time.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Bacon is considered one of Britain's greatest contemporary painters; in fact, he has been a powerful presence in the art world for virtually half this century. In this exhibition catalog, noted British art historian Gowing and his American collaborator have done a thoughtful job of explaining Bacon's intensely morose artistic vision. In their essays they develop a few main themes, then devote the rest of the book to full-page color plates that allow for a chronological survey of the artist's painting. This range of visual imagery will be important for academic and specialized art study. Bacon's life is more clearly detailed in two earlier works, David Sylvester's The Brutality of Fact: Interviews with Francis Bacon (Thames & Hudson, 1987. rev. ed.) and Dawn Ades's Francis Bacon ( LJ 11/15/85). For libraries without either, this monograph is a good beginning.
- Paula A. Baxter, NYPL
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"My painting is not violent; It's life that is violent" - Francis Bacon"

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Poligrafa (November 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 8434311909
• ISBN-13: 978-8434311909
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #857,581 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Get the original folks!, December 4, 2008

By 

Kevin McFarland "faithful" (Madison Wi.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Francis Bacon (Hardcover)

Yes its true, this a reprint of a much more impressive book....and without reservation get that one, not this foggy weak shadow of the original.When I opened the package containing this book I was excited about a supposed new and improved Bacon book , minutes later the book was back in the package and returned. This reprint is NOT AS GOOD AS ITS ORIGINAL, I would say the print job is quite muddy compared to the 1983 version...so buy that one, it is still available...this is solid advice from a serious Bacon enthusiast, heed it .

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to Bacon but not a very deep analysis., April 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Francis Bacon (World of Art) (Paperback)

Like many biographies, Russell's work concentrates more on the man's times than on the man himself. While we learn a lot about what was going on around Bacon, what he himself experienced is left unexplored. Granted, Bacon made gathering biographical information very difficult, but I would have appreciated more insightful analysis of Bacon's life and its connections to his work. Overall it is a very good introduction to Bacon's career and total output, and includes a huge number of pictures that make the book extremely valuable as a reference. Unfortunately though, while there are many color reproductions, they are outnumbered by black and white ones that take away from truly experiencing the power of Bacon's work.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seek this Bacon volume!, June 12, 2001

By 

Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Francis Bacon (Hardcover)

This book on Francis Bacon is out of print but the good people at Amazon.com can help you find it. And if you love Francis Bacon then this book is a MUST for your library. Well written and gorgeous to view, this book more than most shows the less known works of the British genius of psychologically laden painting. The handsome book was a catalogue for the Smithsonian Institution exhibition in 1989 and 1990, before Bacon died. As for a collection of the master's best, look no further.