Freud, Lucian. (1922–2011)
Signed Catalogue
Signed 1974 Hayward Gallery catalogue from the British painter and draftsman. He has penned on the title page: "Dear Thomas / Here is a copy of the catalogue as requested, an image of the Christian Bérard 1948 is on p.19. I am sorry not to have seen more of you these last few weeks. Perhaps we could meet on Sunday? Yours, Lucian." He adds several question marks around his signature. 55 pp. Softcover. Black and white images throughout. Some light toning and shelf wear to the cover; overall fine. 8.25 x 10 inches (21 x 25.5 cm).Lucian Michael Freud, known as one of the foremost 20th-century portraitists, was born in Berlin, the son of Jewish architect Ernst L. Freud and the grandson of Sigmund Freud. His family moved to Britain in 1933 to escape the rise of Nazism. His early career as a painter was influenced by surrealism, but by the early 1950s his often stark and alienated paintings tended towards realism. Freud was an intensely private and guarded man, and his paintings, completed over a 60-year career, are mostly of friends and family. They are generally sombre and thickly impastoed, often set in unsettling interiors and urban landscapes. The works are noted for their psychological penetration and often discomforting examination of the relationship between artist and model. Freud worked from life studies, and was known for asking for extended and punishing sittings from his models.
The work mentioned in the inscription is Freud's 1948 portrait of French artist Christian Bérard, who was the partner of Ballets Russes figure Boris Kochno. (16806)
Signed Document/Item Art & Design