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Francis Bacon

 

Francis Bacon, Self-Portrait, 1969

CONTEXT CLUES:

Francis Bacon's life was full of tragedy. Growing up, Bacon did not have a close relationship with his parents. He had allergies, asthma, and was often sick. World War I happened when he was only 5 years old, and the second World War started when he was 30. At one point he wrote, “I loathe my face . . . I’ve done a lot of self-portraits, really because people have been dying around me like flies and I’ve nobody else left to paint but myself.”

How do you think growing up in such a chaotic time influenced Bacon's art?

Other self-portraits by Francis Bacon:










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