Third Assignment: Gestures

For this assignment I chose a painter who became somewhat famous in the mid 1940's, Francis Bacon. I feel Francis's works fit this assignment perfectly. The way in which he positions, distorts and contorts the bodies and limbs of his subjects are highly expressive. Francis's subjects were often maimed, bleeding and contorted into sexually venerable positions, expressing his anxiety, despair and uncertainty of the world that surrounded him. I love the grotesque brutality of Francis's work and the way he mangles and pretzels his subjects, giving us a glimpse into the ways he views the world. The way Bacon positions and places his subjects is often highly sexual with a sprinkle of violence. When looking at the distorted bodies painted by Bacon a lot comes to mind from science, to religion, despair, violence, and the raising the awareness of homosexuality, in a time when conservative values reigned supreme. Bacon
expression's are complex and dismal to say the least, his art often reflected his chaotic alcohol fueled lifestyle. Francis was a beautiful mess of a man.

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