1969
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Top 10 Bacon Bacon 1963-70 Hockney UK II Twombly Picasso in Mougins The Man Self portrait Cities
See also : Top 10 Bacon Bacon 1963-70 Hockney UK II Twombly Picasso in Mougins The Man Self portrait Cities
1969 BACON
1
Three Studies of Lucian Freud
2013 SOLD for $ 142M by Christie's
As early as 1944, the triptych is the favorite medium of Bacon. The three perspectives cancel the plane of the canvas to provide to the viewer the mental illusion of a three-dimensional space.
Heads in small sizes often come to auction, but larger works are exceptional. On November 12, 2013, Christie's sold for $ 142M Three Studies of Lucian Freud, three oils on canvas painted in 1969, 198 x 148 cm for each element. Please watch the video shared by Christie's.
The two artists have been friends for nearly a quarter of century. Francis is in his George Dyer period and his appeal to Lucian has no reason to be erotic. Always looking for a total empathy with his entourage, Bacon pays tribute to a rival whom he admires. The seating position is gentle, but the colors and deformities of the face express the passions, in front of a strident yellow background.
Bacon locked Freud in a threadlike prism, similar to a squaring but proving his intent of the three-dimensional nature of the triptych. This desire to control his friend is fictional and symbolic because Bacon, as almost every time, worked this triple portrait from photos made by John Deakin.
Christie's does not indicate an estimate but compares the importance of this work with the triptych of the same size sold for $ 86M by Sotheby's on 14 May 2008. Painted in 1976, this work is more symbolic but also less three-dimensional due to the decomposition of the body in the central picture.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Apr 2, 2020
#ThrowbackThursday For almost 30 years, artists #FrancisBacon and #LucianFreud were near-inseparable companions - friends, foils & confidants, they painted each other & pushed each other’s art to new heights. Francis Bacon, 'Three Studies of Lucian Freud’, 1969.
Heads in small sizes often come to auction, but larger works are exceptional. On November 12, 2013, Christie's sold for $ 142M Three Studies of Lucian Freud, three oils on canvas painted in 1969, 198 x 148 cm for each element. Please watch the video shared by Christie's.
The two artists have been friends for nearly a quarter of century. Francis is in his George Dyer period and his appeal to Lucian has no reason to be erotic. Always looking for a total empathy with his entourage, Bacon pays tribute to a rival whom he admires. The seating position is gentle, but the colors and deformities of the face express the passions, in front of a strident yellow background.
Bacon locked Freud in a threadlike prism, similar to a squaring but proving his intent of the three-dimensional nature of the triptych. This desire to control his friend is fictional and symbolic because Bacon, as almost every time, worked this triple portrait from photos made by John Deakin.
Christie's does not indicate an estimate but compares the importance of this work with the triptych of the same size sold for $ 86M by Sotheby's on 14 May 2008. Painted in 1976, this work is more symbolic but also less three-dimensional due to the decomposition of the body in the central picture.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Apr 2, 2020
#ThrowbackThursday For almost 30 years, artists #FrancisBacon and #LucianFreud were near-inseparable companions - friends, foils & confidants, they painted each other & pushed each other’s art to new heights. Francis Bacon, 'Three Studies of Lucian Freud’, 1969.
- The artwork "Three Studies of Lucian Freud" (1969) by Francis Bacon, featured in the post, sold for $142.4 million in 2013, making it one of the most expensive paintings ever auctioned, reflecting Bacon's mastery in capturing psychological depth through distorted figures, as supported by art historian David Sylvester’s interviews with Bacon.
- Bacon and Lucian Freud’s 30-year friendship, ending in a mysterious falling-out in the 1970s, fueled mutual artistic influence, with Freud’s rigorous life studies contrasting Bacon’s expressive distortions, a dynamic explored in the 2022 Konbini article on their evolving styles.
- The triptych format echoes Bacon’s fascination with movement and isolation, possibly influenced by his wartime experiences and Eadweard Muybridge’s motion studies, offering a visual narrative of Freud that challenges traditional portraiture conventions.
2
Study for Bullfight
2007 SOLD for $ 46M by Sotheby's
Life is a struggle that must include risks. Michel Leiris is looking for a ritual to explain his conception of literature. He finds bullfighting, this game in public between man and beast of which one of them will die. In 1938 he publishes an essay titled Miroir de la Tauromachie.
Francis Bacon, existentialist artist, was familiar with the work of Leiris, famous for his reciprocal influence with Sartre. In 1966 Leiris presented to Bacon a copy of his Miroir. Bacon sees in it a new theme for his art, with a sexual allusion in the physical rapprochement between man and bull. He finds photos in the memory book of the matador Antonio Ordóñez.
In 1969 Bacon prepares canvases 200 x 148 cm, probably for the project of a triptych. Two versions, Study for Bullfight No. 1 and No. 2, show the instant action when the bull passes the matador's cape. The arena is a circular area without background, with a tall concave screen in which the artist installs the crowd of spectators.
The sexual excitement is not achieved in these realistic images. His Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 displays two major modifications. The screen is now empty, accentuating the intimacy of the two protagonists of the action. In the foreground, a spermatozoid is disproportionately enlarged, and released from a human shadow on which it had been placed.
Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 was sold for $ 46M by Sotheby's on November 14, 2007, lot 29.
As far as bullfight is concerned, Bacon is neither Hemingway nor Picasso. He probably appreciates that it is illusory to go forward on this theme with his too limited experience of corridas. His torero with a blackened face cannot appeal the aficionados. He will not execute the triptych.
Asking Grok for Bacon's bullfight series analysis :
Francis Bacon’s Bullfight Series (1960s–1990s): A Focused Analysis
Francis Bacon produced a relatively small but intensely powerful group of paintings centered on the theme of the Spanish bullfight, primarily between 1962 and 1969, with a few later returns in the 1980s and 1990s. The key works are:
Francis Bacon, existentialist artist, was familiar with the work of Leiris, famous for his reciprocal influence with Sartre. In 1966 Leiris presented to Bacon a copy of his Miroir. Bacon sees in it a new theme for his art, with a sexual allusion in the physical rapprochement between man and bull. He finds photos in the memory book of the matador Antonio Ordóñez.
In 1969 Bacon prepares canvases 200 x 148 cm, probably for the project of a triptych. Two versions, Study for Bullfight No. 1 and No. 2, show the instant action when the bull passes the matador's cape. The arena is a circular area without background, with a tall concave screen in which the artist installs the crowd of spectators.
The sexual excitement is not achieved in these realistic images. His Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 displays two major modifications. The screen is now empty, accentuating the intimacy of the two protagonists of the action. In the foreground, a spermatozoid is disproportionately enlarged, and released from a human shadow on which it had been placed.
Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 was sold for $ 46M by Sotheby's on November 14, 2007, lot 29.
As far as bullfight is concerned, Bacon is neither Hemingway nor Picasso. He probably appreciates that it is illusory to go forward on this theme with his too limited experience of corridas. His torero with a blackened face cannot appeal the aficionados. He will not execute the triptych.
Asking Grok for Bacon's bullfight series analysis :
Francis Bacon’s Bullfight Series (1960s–1990s): A Focused Analysis
Francis Bacon produced a relatively small but intensely powerful group of paintings centered on the theme of the Spanish bullfight, primarily between 1962 and 1969, with a few later returns in the 1980s and 1990s. The key works are:
- Study for Bullfight No. 1 (1969) – the most famous, often considered the pinnacle
- Study for Bullfight No. 2 (1969)
- Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 (1969)
- Bullfight-related triptychs and single panels from 1962, 1967, 1987, etc.
- Death and the Arena as Metaphor for Existence
Bacon saw the bullring as the ultimate theatre of mortality: two living creatures enter, one must die. He repeatedly described it as “a metaphor for life.” The circular arena becomes a microcosm of the human condition—isolated figures locked in a ritual of violence and inevitable death. - Erotic Charge and Homoerotic Undertow
The confrontation between matador and bull is heavily sexualized in Bacon’s handling. The matador’s elegant, almost balletic pose contrasts with the brute power of the bull, creating a tension that many critics read as homoerotic (especially given Bacon’s own sexuality and his fascination with butch, masculine types). - Blurring of Victim and Victor
In Bacon’s versions, it is never entirely clear who is killing whom. The matador and bull often merge into a single smeared, screaming form. This ambiguity reflects Bacon’s belief that in any act of violence, both parties are destroyed.
- Extreme distortion and motion blur derived from Eadweard Muybridge’s photographs of bulls and from cinema stills (especially Eisenstein and Buñuel).
- Use of a stark, circular arena (often orange or blood-red) that functions like the “space-frames” in his earlier crucifixions and popes—devices to trap and isolate the figure.
- Splattered paint, raw canvas areas, and thick impasto to evoke flesh, blood, and sand simultaneously.
- Mirrors and reflective surfaces in some versions (e.g., 1969 No. 2) that double and fragment the scene, heightening disorientation.
- Study for Bullfight No. 1 (1969) – Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
The definitive image: a lone matador in white, twisted in a scream, standing over a dark, blurred bull on an orange ground. A black swastika-like form (actually the shadow of the arena entrance) looms overhead. Many see this as Bacon’s single most powerful statement on human isolation and impending annihilation. - Study for Bullfight No. 2 (1969)
Introduces spectators in the background—ghostly, smeared faces behind glass—turning the arena into a kind of existential fishbowl. - Second Version of Study for Bullfight No. 1 (1969)
Darker, bloodier, more abstract. The bull is almost completely dissolved into black and red streaks.
- Triptych Inspired by the Oresteia of Aeschylus (1981) contains a central panel with clear bullfight references.
- Bull (1992, private collection) – one of Bacon’s very last paintings, a solitary black bull against raw canvas, almost minimalist.
- Picasso’s bullfight sketches and Guernica (Bacon owned photographs of both).
- Spanish culture (Bacon spent time in Málaga and was obsessed with Spain’s “sense of death”).
- Nietzsche’s reading of Greek tragedy and the bullfight as Dionysian ritual.
- Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon (which Bacon read closely).
3
Self Portrait for Valerie Beston
2023 SOLD for $ 34.6M by Christie's
Francis Bacon was not an easy fellow. Around 1969 he got bored of his Soho friends and arguably also of his lover George. The self portrait becomes a leading theme in his art.
Valerie Beston was a partner to Francis in London in business and in social life. She was overseeing his affairs at the Marlborough Gallery since 1958. Francis prepares for her use a self portrait in bright impastos in the format of his head triptych elements. The slightly bent head is careful and the hairstyle is clean. He is indeed socially acceptable and even tender behind his distorted nose and mouth.
This oil on canvas 36 x 30 cm painted in 1969 is dedicated "to V with all very best wishes, Francis". It had been exhibited in 1971 in the cornerstone solo exhibition at the Grand Palais where Valerie assisted him. Valerie kept it throughout her life. It was sold for $ 34.6M from a lower estimate of $ 22M by Christie's on May 11, 2023, lot 5A.
Coming from the Newhouse collection, it was hung therein as a pendant with a Study of Henrietta Moraes laughing, oil on canvas of same size and same year, sold for $ 21.7M by Christie's on November 15, 2018, lot 6C.
Asking Grok to define significance in the artist's career.
Grok thought :
The painting Self-Portrait (1969) by Francis Bacon, sold as lot 5A at Christie's London on 11 May 2023 for £34.8 million (with fees), was originally commissioned by (and belonged to) Valerie Beston, who was Bacon’s gallerist at Marlborough Fine Art from the early 1960s until his death in 1992. Its sale was one of the highlights of the 20th/21st Century evening sale that season and set a new auction record for a 1960s Bacon self-portrait.
Significance in Francis Bacon’s career
Valerie Beston was a partner to Francis in London in business and in social life. She was overseeing his affairs at the Marlborough Gallery since 1958. Francis prepares for her use a self portrait in bright impastos in the format of his head triptych elements. The slightly bent head is careful and the hairstyle is clean. He is indeed socially acceptable and even tender behind his distorted nose and mouth.
This oil on canvas 36 x 30 cm painted in 1969 is dedicated "to V with all very best wishes, Francis". It had been exhibited in 1971 in the cornerstone solo exhibition at the Grand Palais where Valerie assisted him. Valerie kept it throughout her life. It was sold for $ 34.6M from a lower estimate of $ 22M by Christie's on May 11, 2023, lot 5A.
Coming from the Newhouse collection, it was hung therein as a pendant with a Study of Henrietta Moraes laughing, oil on canvas of same size and same year, sold for $ 21.7M by Christie's on November 15, 2018, lot 6C.
Asking Grok to define significance in the artist's career.
Grok thought :
The painting Self-Portrait (1969) by Francis Bacon, sold as lot 5A at Christie's London on 11 May 2023 for £34.8 million (with fees), was originally commissioned by (and belonged to) Valerie Beston, who was Bacon’s gallerist at Marlborough Fine Art from the early 1960s until his death in 1992. Its sale was one of the highlights of the 20th/21st Century evening sale that season and set a new auction record for a 1960s Bacon self-portrait.
Significance in Francis Bacon’s career
- Peak period of the late 1960s
Painted in 1969, this work belongs to what is widely regarded as Bacon’s strongest and most confident decade (roughly 1963–1972). During these years he refined his mature style: isolated figures in claustrophobic architectural cages, extremely fluid and expressive brushwork, and an almost violent psychological intensity. The 1969 self-portraits are among the most accomplished of his entire self-portrait series. - One of the most intimate and direct self-portraits
Unlike many of Bacon’s earlier self-portraits that are heavily distorted or partially obscured, the 1969 canvas (35.5 × 30.5 cm) presents a relatively frontal, legible face. The features are still twisted and smeared, but the sitter is unmistakably Bacon himself. Critics and scholars (e.g., Martin Harrison in the 2016 catalogue raisonné) consider it one of the most revealing and psychologically raw self-images he ever painted. - Personal context and Valerie Beston
Valerie Beston was not just Bacon’s dealer; she was one of his closest confidantes and effectively managed his daily life and finances for three decades. The fact that Bacon painted this self-portrait specifically for her (one of only a handful of works he ever gave away rather than sold) gives it an exceptional biographical importance. It was kept in her private collection until her death in 2019 and had never appeared on the market before 2023. - Rarity of small-format self-portraits from this exact moment
Bacon painted approximately 45 self-portraits in his career, but only a very small number are on the intimate 35–40 cm canvas size from 1969–1971. Of these, the Beston picture is considered the finest in private hands (the only comparable one is in the National Museum Wales, Cardiff). - Market validation of the late-1960s canon
The £34.8 million result in 2023 confirmed that the very best works from Bacon’s 1963–1971 “golden period” are now firmly in the £30–60 million bracket at auction, placing them among the most expensive post-war European paintings ever sold.
- technical and expressive mastery at the absolute height of Bacon’s powers,
- exceptional personal history (painted for his most trusted friend and never sold in his lifetime),
- extreme rarity within the already scarce group of late-1960s small self-portraits,
- and critical consensus that it is one of the most powerful self-images Bacon ever produced.
4
Self Portrait
2007 SOLD for $ 33M by Sotheby's
In 1969 Francis Bacon is 60 years old. His Soho friends are also aging. He looks at himself, once again.
A painting featuring him with a sad gaze is important for him, as evidenced by its simple title Self Portrait without the frequent "Study for ..." that he uses when a work belongs to a series or an intended series.
This oil on canvas 35 x 45 cm was sold for $ 33M by Sotheby's on November 14, 2007, lot 19.
Asking Grok to compare it with the self portrait sold by Christie's on May 11, 2023 by Christie's :
Asking Grok to compare it with the self portrait sold by Christie's on May 11, 2023 by Christie's :
Grok thought :
Overview
Both paintings are now confirmed as from the same pre-Dyer moment in Bacon's career (1969), capturing his mature exploration of self-portraiture amid rising fame and personal stability. However, subtle differences in execution and context still allow for meaningful comparison, as they represent distinct experiments within Bacon's evolving technique. Below, I've revised the comparison accordingly, focusing on their shared temporal context while highlighting nuances in style, provenance, and market trajectory.
Key Comparison Table
Date and Medium
both : 1969; oil on canvas
Dimensions
Sotheby's : 14 x 12 in. (35.6 x 30.5 cm)
Christie's : 14 x 12 in. (35.6 x 30.5 cm)
Provenance Highlights
Sotheby's : Marlborough Fine Art, London (acquired directly from the artist); European private collection (acquired 1975); exhibited in major retrospectives including Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris (1971–1972) and Marlborough Fine Art (1975)
Christie's : Gift from the artist to Valerie Beston (his studio assistant), London (ca. 1969); S.I. Newhouse Collection (acquired 2006); exhibited at Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris (1971–1972) and Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (1975)
Visual Description
Sotheby's : Bacon's face emerges with sinuous, sweeping brushstrokes from a veiled, dynamic background; the features are abstracted and contorted, conveying raw psychological intensity through bold, expressive distortions. The palette is rich and varied, with a sense of visceral immediacy and energetic confrontation.
Christie's : A vibrant, assaultive depiction with activated, multi-layered brushwork in veiled colors; the face is recognizable yet fragmented, with contorted features emphasizing emotional exuberance and the "figurative sublime." The background pulses with movement, heightening the work's dramatic, almost theatrical presence.
Artistic Style and Technique
Sotheby's : Explosive handling of paint with Picasso-inspired multiple viewpoints; thin, fluid layers blend figuration and abstraction, probing self-perception through distortion and "organic form." The result is a ferocious, immediate study of identity's fluidity.
Christie's : Similarly experimental with sinuous, intuitive strokes and veiling effects; draws on Cubist fragmentation for emotional depth, but with a slightly warmer tonality that softens the aggression, reflecting a gift to a close confidante.
Thematic Content and Context
Sotheby's : Created amid Bacon's 1960s success and pre-Dyer stability, this work explores existential tension and the self as a site of obsession ("death at work," echoing Cocteau). It anticipates the inward grief of the 1970s "black triptychs" but pulses with pre-tragedy vitality, free from personal loss's shadow.
Christie's : Painted in the same buoyant yet probing phase, it delves into mortality and self-scrutiny with exuberant energy. As a dedicated gift to Beston, it carries a layer of personal warmth, symbolizing trust amid Bacon's rising fame and the "Swinging London" dynamism.
Cultural Significance
Sotheby's : A cornerstone of Bacon's 1960s portraiture evolution; its 1971 Grand Palais inclusion helped establish his European legacy. The 2007 sale highlighted early market enthusiasm for his visceral self-images, setting a benchmark later eclipsed.
Christie's : Equally pivotal, bridging Bacon's experimental 1960s and the melancholic 1970s; its Grand Palais debut and Met exhibition underscore its role in canonizing his self-portrait series. The 2023 Newhouse sale affirmed its enduring appeal in high-profile dispersals.
Market Impact
Sotheby's : Established a self-portrait record in 2007 during the contemporary boom; appreciated over 300% from 1975 acquisition, signaling Bacon's ascent.
Christie's : Quadrupled its 2006 price in 2023, exceeding estimates amid post-pandemic recovery; reflects Bacon's sustained top-tier status, with self-portraits now routinely topping $30 million.
Deeper Analysis
With both works firmly dated to 1969—Bacon's annus mirabilis for self-portraiture, following his landmark Grand Palais retrospective—they share the intimate 14 x 12 in. format he reserved for uncommissioned, mirror-derived introspection, much like Rembrandt's lifelong series (which Bacon called "haunting"). This scale fosters raw vulnerability, with veiling techniques blurring figure and ground to evoke identity's instability. Pre-Dyer, neither carries the overt grief of later works like Three Studies for a Self-Portrait (1979–80), but both channel the era's intellectual ferment: Bacon's fascination with Picasso's distortions, Velázquez's psychological depth, and the existential "screens" (as he termed perceptual barriers) that obscure the self.
Stylistic nuances emerge despite the shared year. The Sotheby's Self-Portrait assaults with mesmerising force—its sinuous strokes and multi-viewpoint fragmentation create a "ferocious originality," as critic David Sylvester described, capturing exuberance in portraiture's investigation. In contrast, the Christie's version, dedicated to Valerie Beston (Bacon's Marlborough liaison and confidante), tempers this intensity with warmer veils and a subtle expressiveness, reflecting personal affection amid professional triumph. Both probe mortality's undercurrent—Bacon quipped to Sylvester in 1973 that self-portraits were born of "people dying around me like flies," even pre-Dyer—but they do so with 1960s vitality, not 1970s resignation. Market-wise, the 16-year span between sales illustrates Bacon's escalating value: the 2007 hammer price shattered records for its time, while 2023's escalation (amid the Newhouse collection's prestige) underscores how these intimate gems now rival his triptychs in demand. Together, they exemplify 1969 as a fulcrum in Bacon's oeuvre—vibrant yet foreboding—transforming personal scrutiny into universal dread, and cementing his status as modern portraiture's great disturber.
A painting featuring him with a sad gaze is important for him, as evidenced by its simple title Self Portrait without the frequent "Study for ..." that he uses when a work belongs to a series or an intended series.
This oil on canvas 35 x 45 cm was sold for $ 33M by Sotheby's on November 14, 2007, lot 19.
Asking Grok to compare it with the self portrait sold by Christie's on May 11, 2023 by Christie's :
Asking Grok to compare it with the self portrait sold by Christie's on May 11, 2023 by Christie's :
Grok thought :
Overview
Both paintings are now confirmed as from the same pre-Dyer moment in Bacon's career (1969), capturing his mature exploration of self-portraiture amid rising fame and personal stability. However, subtle differences in execution and context still allow for meaningful comparison, as they represent distinct experiments within Bacon's evolving technique. Below, I've revised the comparison accordingly, focusing on their shared temporal context while highlighting nuances in style, provenance, and market trajectory.
Key Comparison Table
Date and Medium
both : 1969; oil on canvas
Dimensions
Sotheby's : 14 x 12 in. (35.6 x 30.5 cm)
Christie's : 14 x 12 in. (35.6 x 30.5 cm)
Provenance Highlights
Sotheby's : Marlborough Fine Art, London (acquired directly from the artist); European private collection (acquired 1975); exhibited in major retrospectives including Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris (1971–1972) and Marlborough Fine Art (1975)
Christie's : Gift from the artist to Valerie Beston (his studio assistant), London (ca. 1969); S.I. Newhouse Collection (acquired 2006); exhibited at Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris (1971–1972) and Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (1975)
Visual Description
Sotheby's : Bacon's face emerges with sinuous, sweeping brushstrokes from a veiled, dynamic background; the features are abstracted and contorted, conveying raw psychological intensity through bold, expressive distortions. The palette is rich and varied, with a sense of visceral immediacy and energetic confrontation.
Christie's : A vibrant, assaultive depiction with activated, multi-layered brushwork in veiled colors; the face is recognizable yet fragmented, with contorted features emphasizing emotional exuberance and the "figurative sublime." The background pulses with movement, heightening the work's dramatic, almost theatrical presence.
Artistic Style and Technique
Sotheby's : Explosive handling of paint with Picasso-inspired multiple viewpoints; thin, fluid layers blend figuration and abstraction, probing self-perception through distortion and "organic form." The result is a ferocious, immediate study of identity's fluidity.
Christie's : Similarly experimental with sinuous, intuitive strokes and veiling effects; draws on Cubist fragmentation for emotional depth, but with a slightly warmer tonality that softens the aggression, reflecting a gift to a close confidante.
Thematic Content and Context
Sotheby's : Created amid Bacon's 1960s success and pre-Dyer stability, this work explores existential tension and the self as a site of obsession ("death at work," echoing Cocteau). It anticipates the inward grief of the 1970s "black triptychs" but pulses with pre-tragedy vitality, free from personal loss's shadow.
Christie's : Painted in the same buoyant yet probing phase, it delves into mortality and self-scrutiny with exuberant energy. As a dedicated gift to Beston, it carries a layer of personal warmth, symbolizing trust amid Bacon's rising fame and the "Swinging London" dynamism.
Cultural Significance
Sotheby's : A cornerstone of Bacon's 1960s portraiture evolution; its 1971 Grand Palais inclusion helped establish his European legacy. The 2007 sale highlighted early market enthusiasm for his visceral self-images, setting a benchmark later eclipsed.
Christie's : Equally pivotal, bridging Bacon's experimental 1960s and the melancholic 1970s; its Grand Palais debut and Met exhibition underscore its role in canonizing his self-portrait series. The 2023 Newhouse sale affirmed its enduring appeal in high-profile dispersals.
Market Impact
Sotheby's : Established a self-portrait record in 2007 during the contemporary boom; appreciated over 300% from 1975 acquisition, signaling Bacon's ascent.
Christie's : Quadrupled its 2006 price in 2023, exceeding estimates amid post-pandemic recovery; reflects Bacon's sustained top-tier status, with self-portraits now routinely topping $30 million.
Deeper Analysis
With both works firmly dated to 1969—Bacon's annus mirabilis for self-portraiture, following his landmark Grand Palais retrospective—they share the intimate 14 x 12 in. format he reserved for uncommissioned, mirror-derived introspection, much like Rembrandt's lifelong series (which Bacon called "haunting"). This scale fosters raw vulnerability, with veiling techniques blurring figure and ground to evoke identity's instability. Pre-Dyer, neither carries the overt grief of later works like Three Studies for a Self-Portrait (1979–80), but both channel the era's intellectual ferment: Bacon's fascination with Picasso's distortions, Velázquez's psychological depth, and the existential "screens" (as he termed perceptual barriers) that obscure the self.
Stylistic nuances emerge despite the shared year. The Sotheby's Self-Portrait assaults with mesmerising force—its sinuous strokes and multi-viewpoint fragmentation create a "ferocious originality," as critic David Sylvester described, capturing exuberance in portraiture's investigation. In contrast, the Christie's version, dedicated to Valerie Beston (Bacon's Marlborough liaison and confidante), tempers this intensity with warmer veils and a subtle expressiveness, reflecting personal affection amid professional triumph. Both probe mortality's undercurrent—Bacon quipped to Sylvester in 1973 that self-portraits were born of "people dying around me like flies," even pre-Dyer—but they do so with 1960s vitality, not 1970s resignation. Market-wise, the 16-year span between sales illustrates Bacon's escalating value: the 2007 hammer price shattered records for its time, while 2023's escalation (amid the Newhouse collection's prestige) underscores how these intimate gems now rival his triptychs in demand. Together, they exemplify 1969 as a fulcrum in Bacon's oeuvre—vibrant yet foreboding—transforming personal scrutiny into universal dread, and cementing his status as modern portraiture's great disturber.
1969 HOCKNEY
1
Sainte-Maxime
2022 SOLD for £ 21M by Christie's
In 1966 Peter Schlesinger is attending a drawing class in Los Angeles. For this session, the teacher is David Hockney, an eccentric Brit with a tomato red suit, cardboard glasses and a terrible Yorkshire accent. It's love at first sight. Their life as a couple lasts several years, with social gatherings and travels.
In the fall of 1968, after a cruise down the Rhine, they are guested by the film director Tony Richardson in his villa Le Nid du Duc in the mountains over the Côte d'Azur.
David takes photos, from which he will realize four realistic paintings as souvenirs of that happy time.
Early morning, Sainte-Maxime, acrylic on canvas 122 x 153 cm painted in 1969, is a contre-jour view of the sea shore in that chic resort, taking advantage of the sunrise reflection on the sea for a range of bright colors, from the pink and violet sky to the purple, azure and aquamarine of the sea and the gold on sun light.
The picture includes the signature streaks for the stylized waves. A jetty at low tide looks like a Californian diving board. For the hypersensitive artist, the sunrise symbolizes the hope and joy of awakening.
This painting was sold for £ 21M from a lower estimate of £ 7M by Christie's on October 13, 2022, lot 8.
In the fall of 1968, after a cruise down the Rhine, they are guested by the film director Tony Richardson in his villa Le Nid du Duc in the mountains over the Côte d'Azur.
David takes photos, from which he will realize four realistic paintings as souvenirs of that happy time.
Early morning, Sainte-Maxime, acrylic on canvas 122 x 153 cm painted in 1969, is a contre-jour view of the sea shore in that chic resort, taking advantage of the sunrise reflection on the sea for a range of bright colors, from the pink and violet sky to the purple, azure and aquamarine of the sea and the gold on sun light.
The picture includes the signature streaks for the stylized waves. A jetty at low tide looks like a Californian diving board. For the hypersensitive artist, the sunrise symbolizes the hope and joy of awakening.
This painting was sold for £ 21M from a lower estimate of £ 7M by Christie's on October 13, 2022, lot 8.
2
Geldzahler and Scott
2019 SOLD for £ 38M by Christie's
Looking for sexual freedom, David Hockney arrives in California in 1964. The easy life nevertheless does not answer his questioning about communication within a couple.
Between 1968 and 1977 he makes double portraits in very large format, 214 x 305 cm. He alternates between homosexual and heterosexual couples and ends the series with his own parents, clearly assessing that his concern is no longer sex but dialogue. The sitters are most often identified in the title and are very recognizable.
Invariably the two characters are distant from each other with a deliberately orthogonal gazing. In this strange intimacy, the painter is an invisible social voyeur.
Installed again in London in 1968, he does not neglect America. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is preparing a major exhibition that will reveal post-war American art to the general public. The curator of this important cultural operation is the highly influential Henry Geldzahler.
Hockney arrives in Geldzahler's living room in Manhattan with his sketchbook, polaroid camera and flu. Back in his studio in London, he paints in 1969 'Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott'. This acrylic on canvas was sold for £ 38M by Christie's on March 6, 2019, lot 8.
The two men could not be more dissimilar and yet their life as a couple is sustainable. Robust and confident in himself, Geldzahler is comfortably seated in the middle of a beautiful sofa worthy of the greatest Art Deco collections. On the right, his young partner is standing, dressed in a raincoat too big for him and as stiff as the floor lamp. The scene is located by the skyscrapers beyond the small window.
Grok thought from earlier tweet :
Quote
Brindille @Brindille_ Mar 24, 2017
"Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott", 1969 #painting by David Hockney #exhibition at @Tate Britain http://tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/david-hockney…
Between 1968 and 1977 he makes double portraits in very large format, 214 x 305 cm. He alternates between homosexual and heterosexual couples and ends the series with his own parents, clearly assessing that his concern is no longer sex but dialogue. The sitters are most often identified in the title and are very recognizable.
Invariably the two characters are distant from each other with a deliberately orthogonal gazing. In this strange intimacy, the painter is an invisible social voyeur.
Installed again in London in 1968, he does not neglect America. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is preparing a major exhibition that will reveal post-war American art to the general public. The curator of this important cultural operation is the highly influential Henry Geldzahler.
Hockney arrives in Geldzahler's living room in Manhattan with his sketchbook, polaroid camera and flu. Back in his studio in London, he paints in 1969 'Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott'. This acrylic on canvas was sold for £ 38M by Christie's on March 6, 2019, lot 8.
The two men could not be more dissimilar and yet their life as a couple is sustainable. Robust and confident in himself, Geldzahler is comfortably seated in the middle of a beautiful sofa worthy of the greatest Art Deco collections. On the right, his young partner is standing, dressed in a raincoat too big for him and as stiff as the floor lamp. The scene is located by the skyscrapers beyond the small window.
Grok thought from earlier tweet :
Quote
Brindille @Brindille_ Mar 24, 2017
"Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott", 1969 #painting by David Hockney #exhibition at @Tate Britain http://tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/david-hockney…
- David Hockney's 1969 acrylic double portrait depicts influential curator Henry Geldzahler seated on a pink sofa with partner Christopher Scott standing nearby, overlooking a hazy New York skyline, symbolizing their personal and professional bond in the art world.
- Painted during Hockney's shift to ambitious large-scale works, it represented a career turning point, later fetching $49.8 million at Christie's in 2019 as a rare early example of his mature style.
- Posted by art aficionado @Brindille_ amid the Tate Britain's Hockney retrospective, the image underscores the painting's role in exploring queer identity and urban modernity through stylized domestic scenes.
1969 TWOMBLY
1
Untitled (Bolsena)
2015 SOLD for $ 43M by Christie's
From May to October 1969 Cy Twombly spends the summer in a Renaissance palace above Lake Bolsena, where he isolates himself to deepen his quest about the primordial generation of human energy through movement. Aged 41, he is certainly less sensitive to pornography and more to communication.
His new style will be comparable to a street art whose insignificant details form an opulent waterfall of graffiti through the spontaneity of the artist's gesture. He works with house paint, lead or graphite, wax pencil and sometimes felt-tip pen on canvases 200 x 240 cm.
Temporarily renouncing the dark background, he distributes his floating forms on a cream or off-white surface. Color is limited to pencil lines. Rectangles and numerals replace in this waterfall his previous graffitis of the antique passions.
This sub-series inspired by the Apollo 11 lunar mission is made of 14 Untitled (Bolsena) 200 x 240 cm canvases.
One of them was sold for $ 15.4M by Sotheby's on May 13, 2013, lot 13.
Another opus was sold for $ 43M by Christie's on May 13, 2015, lot 43B. It is very precisely dated July 10, 1969, during the preparation phase of the space mission.
His new style will be comparable to a street art whose insignificant details form an opulent waterfall of graffiti through the spontaneity of the artist's gesture. He works with house paint, lead or graphite, wax pencil and sometimes felt-tip pen on canvases 200 x 240 cm.
Temporarily renouncing the dark background, he distributes his floating forms on a cream or off-white surface. Color is limited to pencil lines. Rectangles and numerals replace in this waterfall his previous graffitis of the antique passions.
This sub-series inspired by the Apollo 11 lunar mission is made of 14 Untitled (Bolsena) 200 x 240 cm canvases.
One of them was sold for $ 15.4M by Sotheby's on May 13, 2013, lot 13.
Another opus was sold for $ 43M by Christie's on May 13, 2015, lot 43B. It is very precisely dated July 10, 1969, during the preparation phase of the space mission.
2
Untitled (Bolsena)
2020 SOLD for $ 39M by Christie's
Another Untitled (Bolsena) 200 x 240 cm was sold for $ 39M by Christie's on October 6, 2020, lot 16.
Grok thought :
Quote
MarilynSofiaVictoria (MSV13) @MarilynMarriott Jan 9, 2024
Cy Twombly, Untitled [Bolsena], 1969 Photo : Christie's Price: $38.7 million
Grok thought :
Quote
MarilynSofiaVictoria (MSV13) @MarilynMarriott Jan 9, 2024
Cy Twombly, Untitled [Bolsena], 1969 Photo : Christie's Price: $38.7 million
- This post highlights Cy Twombly's 1969 abstract canvas "Untitled [Bolsena]" from his Bolsena series, featuring chaotic scribbles, fragmented words, and geometric marks on a raw canvas, evoking ancient graffiti and post-Apollo 11 introspection.
- The work fetched $38.7 million at Christie's October 2020 evening sale, a record for Twombly at the time, amid a pandemic-era auction that totaled $341 million and underscored resilient demand for gestural abstraction.
- As part of a thread by NFT co-founder Marilyn Marriott listing multimillion-dollar abstract sales, it implicitly draws parallels between high-stakes traditional art markets and the speculative boom in digital NFTs.
3
Blackboard
2022 SOLD for $ 38M by Sotheby's
In his so named Blackboard series, Twombly tries every possible disturbance of line and script.
An Untitled from 1969 reveals the rebellious energy of the artist. The edge to edge lines of loops are so intertwined that they are not easily counted at a first glance; they are in fact five lines in the usual proportions in the series with intervals fitted by overlapping narrower lines..
That mixing increases from top to bottom. In the same direction, the basic loop is degraded into a mere sawtooth.
The proto-writing reaches an unreadable effect, modeling a civilization that jumps from order to disorder.
This oil based house paint and wax crayon on canvas 200 x 240 cm was sold for $ 38M by Sotheby's on May 19, 2022, lot 119.
A graphite, wax crayon and oil-based house paint on canvas was executed by Twombly on a white background in the same 200 x 240 cm size as the Apollo 11 inspired series to which it is considered as belonging, but it could more properly be attached to the so-called Blackboard series.
Its proto-writing is fully erased by nervous lines, including an unexplained 17 in the middle and the expansive signature of the artist between the identifications BOLSENA and 69 in the lower right.
This otherwise untitled picture was sold for $ 20M by Christie's on May 11, 2023, lot 14A.
Asking Grok to compare the 1969 Untitled sold by Sotheby's on May 19, 2022with the 1968 Untitled sold by Sotheby's on November 11, 2015.
Grok Thoughts :
OverviewBoth artworks are exemplary pieces from Cy Twombly's renowned Blackboard series (1966-1971), characterized by repetitive, looping forms executed in wax crayon over a grey ground of oil-based house paint. This series marked a shift in Twombly's practice toward minimalist restraint and gestural abstraction, influenced by his time in New York amid the rise of Minimalism, while evoking classical and archaeological references. The 1968 work, created in New York, emphasizes systematic repetition with increasing expressive abandon, while the 1969 piece, also from this period, highlights lyrical vitality in a larger, panoramic format. Despite stylistic similarities, the 1968 painting achieved a significantly higher sale price, likely due to its status as a record-setter at the time and its provenance tied to prominent collections.
Key Differences
An Untitled from 1969 reveals the rebellious energy of the artist. The edge to edge lines of loops are so intertwined that they are not easily counted at a first glance; they are in fact five lines in the usual proportions in the series with intervals fitted by overlapping narrower lines..
That mixing increases from top to bottom. In the same direction, the basic loop is degraded into a mere sawtooth.
The proto-writing reaches an unreadable effect, modeling a civilization that jumps from order to disorder.
This oil based house paint and wax crayon on canvas 200 x 240 cm was sold for $ 38M by Sotheby's on May 19, 2022, lot 119.
A graphite, wax crayon and oil-based house paint on canvas was executed by Twombly on a white background in the same 200 x 240 cm size as the Apollo 11 inspired series to which it is considered as belonging, but it could more properly be attached to the so-called Blackboard series.
Its proto-writing is fully erased by nervous lines, including an unexplained 17 in the middle and the expansive signature of the artist between the identifications BOLSENA and 69 in the lower right.
This otherwise untitled picture was sold for $ 20M by Christie's on May 11, 2023, lot 14A.
Asking Grok to compare the 1969 Untitled sold by Sotheby's on May 19, 2022with the 1968 Untitled sold by Sotheby's on November 11, 2015.
Grok Thoughts :
OverviewBoth artworks are exemplary pieces from Cy Twombly's renowned Blackboard series (1966-1971), characterized by repetitive, looping forms executed in wax crayon over a grey ground of oil-based house paint. This series marked a shift in Twombly's practice toward minimalist restraint and gestural abstraction, influenced by his time in New York amid the rise of Minimalism, while evoking classical and archaeological references. The 1968 work, created in New York, emphasizes systematic repetition with increasing expressive abandon, while the 1969 piece, also from this period, highlights lyrical vitality in a larger, panoramic format. Despite stylistic similarities, the 1968 painting achieved a significantly higher sale price, likely due to its status as a record-setter at the time and its provenance tied to prominent collections.
Key Differences
- Scale and Composition: The 1969 work is larger and more panoramic, potentially offering a broader, more immersive experience, while the 1968 piece focuses on structured horizontal bands with progressive intensity.
- Market Performance: The 1968 painting set an auction record for Twombly in 2015, selling well above estimate amid a booming market, whereas the 1969 piece underperformed its estimate in 2022, possibly due to market cooling or perceived differences in iconicity.
- Provenance and Documentation: The 1968 has a more extensive history with high-profile owners like the Saatchi Collection and exhibition exposure, enhancing its prestige, compared to the 1969's shorter, more private chain.
1969 Mousquetaire à la pipe by Picasso
2013 SOLD for $ 31M by Sotheby's
In 1966, Pablo Picasso is recovering. Despite his fragile health, the artist has kept his frenzy of creation, but his relationship to the world has changed. He no longer travels and is afraid of being jostled by a crowd.
His Musketeers are an offshoot of the masculinity that still excites the old man, but it is difficult to regard them as self-portraits. They are instead his companions of adventures. The temperament of the male transcends time: Picasso compares the soldiers from Rembrandt's time with the hippies of the sexual revolution.
The art of Picasso becomes a wink of complicity with youth. For the first time, his theme is decidedly humorous. The French boys, always fans of Alexandre Dumas, are delighted. They do not consider the dominant red and gold of these paintings that also mark the artist's refusal to return to Franco's Spain. Art critics are skeptical, except Zervos.
Pablo combines his own styles within that series as he has done since the early 1930s. A decidedly cubist Mousquetaire à la pipe, oil on canvas 195 x 130 cm painted on March 5, 1969, was sold for $ 31M by Sotheby's on November 6, 2013 from a lower estimate of $ 12M, lot 29.
His Musketeers are an offshoot of the masculinity that still excites the old man, but it is difficult to regard them as self-portraits. They are instead his companions of adventures. The temperament of the male transcends time: Picasso compares the soldiers from Rembrandt's time with the hippies of the sexual revolution.
The art of Picasso becomes a wink of complicity with youth. For the first time, his theme is decidedly humorous. The French boys, always fans of Alexandre Dumas, are delighted. They do not consider the dominant red and gold of these paintings that also mark the artist's refusal to return to Franco's Spain. Art critics are skeptical, except Zervos.
Pablo combines his own styles within that series as he has done since the early 1930s. A decidedly cubist Mousquetaire à la pipe, oil on canvas 195 x 130 cm painted on March 5, 1969, was sold for $ 31M by Sotheby's on November 6, 2013 from a lower estimate of $ 12M, lot 29.
