Greetings!
I hope you will be able to join us
on Friday 21st August, 11.30am (for about an hour)
at The Beaumont, Barchester Care, 15 Cannon Hill, Old Southgate, N14 7DJ
to continue our exploration of Francis Bacon’s art by way of his 1967 diptych “Study for Head of Isabel Rawsthorne and George Dyer” (c/o Christie’s, see: https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-5916864)
Last month we discussed the friendship and artistic dialogue Bacon had with Isabel Rawsthorne (1912-1992), and it is worth noting Carol Jacobi’s biography:
Francis Bacon: Portrait of Isabel Rawsthorne Standing in a Street in Soho [1967; Staatliche Museen zu Berlin]; “Out of the Cage: The Art of Isabel Rawsthorne” by Carol Jacobi [2021; Thames & Hudson publishers].
This month, we’ll look at the second face of the diptych George Dyer (1934-1971), Bacon’s lover and muse through the late 1960s – and how he was “translated” into paint by the artist.
Photo’s from Gregoire Billault’s essay: “Dyer Crouching To Star in Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Auction”, see Sotheby‘s.
There’ll be lots to look at and discuss as always – I hope you’ll be able to come along!
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The discussions are for everyone, whether residents or local community. Please note a £3 on-the-door request to cover the cost of coffee and biscuits. With all thanks to Barchester Health Care.
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Notes:
To explore the life & art of Francis Bacon further, a very good place to start is: https://www.francis-bacon.com/ .
There’s an old Arena interview with hin on i-player – but only for a month: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002k96s/arena-francis-bacon
And there’s a very good essay by Sebastian Smee about Bacon’s time in 1970s Paris c/o the Gagosian Quarterly: https://gagosian.com/quarterly/2026/04/10/essay-francis-bacon-reinventing-realism/
Among the many books about Francis Bacon, I’d recommend:
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thecommonviewer 