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Loading... Interviews with Francis Bacon (1975)by David Sylvester
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. A good book but I was hoping for some juicy interviews. Mostly David Sylvester asks him about his methods, materials, a lot of stuff that's specific to oil painting, not a lot of hot goss in here. It's nice that Francis Bacon didn't get his start until he was 35, nor did he ever get to school, and I liked the part where he describes painting a screaming mouth like Monet paints a sunset. You gotta really want to know about his process, I really wanted to know about his boyfriends. no reviews | add a review
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A reissue of the extraordinarily revealing interviews with Francis Bacon conducted by Sylvester over a period of 25 years. They amount to a unique statement by Bacon on his art, and on art in general. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)759.2The arts Painting History, geographic treatment, biography England and British IslesLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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There are a few subjects Sylvester returns to more than once and teases out. Bacon’s preference for painting portraits from photographs rather than the seated person. “They inhibit me.” His affinity for a sense of meat in paintings, religious imagery, using triptychs as a format. His preference for not telling a story or narrative with his paintings. “The moment the story enters, the boredom comes upon you.”
There’s some discussion of how Bacon’s world view affects his work. “I’m always surprised when I wake up in the morning,” and “You can be optimistic and totally without hope.”
There are color plates of many of Bacon’s unsetting images and in some cases the sources of their inspiration. The book itself is physically substantial, of high quality with thick glossy pages and the many illustrations. David Sylvester is a penetrating interviewer. Bacon is an honest and articulate subject. It makes for a fascinating series of interviews and book. ( )