Lucian Freud - Contemporary Art Day Sale London Wednesday, October 12, 2011 | Phillips

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  • Provenance

    Gift from the artist; Baron H. H. Thyssen-Bornemisza; Private Collection

  • Catalogue Essay

    When Baron H. H. Thyssen-Bornemisza posed for Man in a Chair in 1985, he asked the artist for the telephone number of one of his daughters. Lucian Freud wrote it down on a drawing sheet, tore it off and gave it to him. When the sitter turned it over, he discovered the drawing.

  • Artist Biography

    Lucian Freud

    British • 1922 - 2011

    Renowned for his unflinching observations, Lucian Freud is considered one of the greatest figurative artists. He pushed the boundaries of decorum in terms of classical portraiture and nudes in order to explore his lifelong concern to honestly render the human figure, in what he called his "naked portraits."

    In his paintings, Freud's layers of impasto jabs of paint create a surprisingly delicate, translucent depiction of flesh, while his etchings employ an economy of line that implies the figure more than it illustrates it. Charismatic but irascible, Freud worked only from sitters that he knew, consistently focusing on translating his direct perceptions. The resulting portraits are redolent with a stark and evocative psychological intensity, underpinned by an unexpected tenderness towards the subject.

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229

Untitled

1985
Charcoal on paper.
19 x 21 cm (7 1/2 x 8 1/4 in).

Estimate
£10,000 - 15,000 ‡♠

Sold for £32,450

Contemporary Art Day Sale

13 October 2011
London