246 - After FRANCIS BACON (Dublin, 1909 – Madrid, 1992).

After FRANCIS BACON (Dublin, 1909 – Madrid, 1992). “Metropolitan Museum of Art,” 1981. Color lithograph on paper. Signature reproduced on the plate. Numbered in pencil 16/250. Certificate of authenticity included. Measurements: 65 x 50 cm. This composition reproduces the image created by Francis Bacon in 1975 for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, on the occasion of the exhibition *Francis Bacon: Recent Paintings*. The original lithograph, published by the museum, is documented in Bruno Sabatier’s catalog raisonné of his graphic work (no. 11). The image revisits a composition linked to the 1974–1977 triptych, one of the most representative works of his artistic maturity. The scene centers on a human figure with distorted anatomy, situated within a circular space and flanked by two portraits. In the foreground appears a second figure with disjointed forms, whose presence accentuates the unsettling nature of the composition. The deformation of the bodies, the chromatic hallmarks, and the spatial ambiguity reflect Bacon’s explorations of identity, the human condition, and the fragility of existence. Francis Bacon developed a style of painting of extraordinary expressive intensity, centered on the representation of the human body and its psychological tensions. Associated with the so-called London School, he achieved international recognition during the second half of the 20th century, participating in the 1954 Venice Biennale and being the subject of a major retrospective at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1971. His work has been the subject of major exhibitions at Tate Britain, the Museo del Prado, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and is part of prestigious collections such as the Tate, MoMA, and the Centre Pompidou.