Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 24

Francis Bacon
Second Version, Triptych 1944

1989

$41,500
£31,469.14
€36,766.44
CA$59,342.64
A$60,253.03
CHF 34,156.16
MX$734,008.08
NOK 403,975.97
SEK 404,093.40
DKK 274,822.87

About the Item

Francis Bacon (1909-1992) is one of the most distinctive, provocative, and influential painters of the 20th century. He is a true disrupter in the canon of Art History. His singular aesthetic was an intersection between abstraction and expressionistic portraiture. While the subjects in his paintings were often identified, distinctive features were typically smeared and distorted, often reflecting their inner turmoil or the artist's conflicting emotions related to his subject. "Second Version of Triptych, 1944" is a 1988 reworking of Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion. Created at the age of 78, it was the artist's last triptych. While the focal figures in the Second Version are comparable to the first, they are smaller on the larger canvases, plunged into a deep void. Bacon also changed the orange background to a deep crimson/rust red, heightening the sense of inherent violence. The distorted anthropomorphic creatures howl and scream, echoing the version he created during the Second World War. These figures recall the vengeful Greek Furies and Christian crucifixion imagery. Punishing those who go against the natural order, the Greek Furies are a pointed representation from Bacon, reflecting the horrors of war, the Holocaust, and a world order in flux. Visceral and haunting, each "figure" maintains their independence and awful intensity. Harrowing postures, gnawing teeth, contorted limbs, and bulbous masses evoke a characteristic nightmarish essence that remains ever present in Bacon's oeuvre. This set of three lithographs was produced one year after the painting, at a time when Bacon's work was being shown globally. As an intentional reworking of one of his most important paintings, this artwork would be a notable addition to any collection. Over the years, this triptych of lithographs have regularly been split up, with each element being sold independently. It is increasingly rare to find a complete triptych like this one on the secondary market. Today, Bacon's canvases fetch astounding prices at auction, achieving a record of $142.4 million in 2014. Questions about this piece? Contact us. "Second Version, Triptych 1944" Paris, 1989 The complete set of three lithographs in colors on Arches wove paper Signed and numbered "34/60" in pencil, lower edge From an edition of 60 Published by Michael Archimbaud for Librairie Séguier for IRCAM, Centre Pompidou, Paris, the full sheets Printed by Art Estampe 29.75"H 22"W (each sheet) 36.25"H 29.25"W (each frame) Very good condition Literature: Bruno Sabatier, Francis Bacon: The Graphic Work, no. 24. Reference: Sabatier 24
  • Creator:
    Francis Bacon (1909 - 1992, British, Irish)
  • Creation Year:
    1989
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 29.75 in (75.57 cm)Width: 22 in (55.88 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
    Very good condition.
  • Gallery Location:
    Toronto, CA
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 04-261stDibs: LU215217906612

More From This Seller

View All
Three Forms

Three Forms

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...

Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Prints

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

Untitled (Vertical)

Untitled (Vertical)

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

In Celebration

In Celebration

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Lithograph

Carpeta

Carpeta

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of abstract painters that radically defined Modern painting in Ameri...

Category

1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Lithograph

Ulysses: The Hospital

Ulysses: The Hospital

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...

Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Prints

Materials

Etching

Africa Suite #6

Africa Suite #6

By Robert Motherwell

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of abstract painters that radically defined Modern painting in Ameri...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Screen

You May Also Like

Triptych August 1972 - Irish Triptych

Triptych August 1972 - Irish Triptych

By Francis Bacon

Located in London, GB

This complete set of three lithographs in colours, comprising the triptych, are each hand signed in pencil by the artist "Francis Bacon" at the lower right margins. Each sheet is als...

Category

1980s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

Bacon, Le Boeuf, 1986

Bacon, Le Boeuf, 1986

By Francis Bacon

Located in Fairfield, CT

Artist: After Francis Bacon (1909-1992) Title: Le Boeuf, exhibition poster Year: 1986 Medium: Offset Lithograph on premium paper Size: 30.75 x 18 inches Condition: Excellent Notes: Published by Foundation Maeght FRANCIS BACON (1909-1992) Francis Bacon has a distinctive style as a figure painter. In his mature style, developed in the 1950s, the paintings include images of either friends or lovers, or images of people found in movie stills...

Category

1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Lithograph, Offset

Francis Bacon 'Three Studies for Portrait of Lucian Freud' lithograph 1966

Francis Bacon 'Three Studies for Portrait of Lucian Freud' lithograph 1966

By (after) Francis Bacon

Located in Pembroke Pines, FL

Lithograph on vélin paper. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered. Good condition, with trifold, as issued. Notes: From Derrière le miroir, N° 162. Published by Aimé Maeght, Éditeur, P...

Category

1960s Contemporary Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

Bacon, Personnage Couche 1966

Bacon, Personnage Couche 1966

By Francis Bacon

Located in Fairfield, CT

Artist: After Francis Bacon (1909-1992) Title: Personnage Couche, exhibition poster Year: 1966 Medium: Offset Lithograph on wove paper Size: 28 x 17....

Category

1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

Materials

Lithograph, Offset

Portrait of George Dyer Staring at Blind Cord

Portrait of George Dyer Staring at Blind Cord

By Francis Bacon

Located in London, GB

Francis Bacon
 Portrait of George Dyer Staring at Blind Cord, 1966 Lithograph on paper 44.7 x 36.4 cm (framed) framed with 3mm ArtGlass Lifetime Museum Acrylic Published by Galerie...

Category

1960s Modern Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

1960s Art Modernist Original Abstract Oil Painting

1960s Art Modernist Original Abstract Oil Painting

By Francis Bacon

Located in Chula Vista, CA

1960s abstract modern painting original oil on canvas art. In the style of Francis Bacon. Dominant colors red and black. Unframed. Unsigned. 43.5 l x 29.75 x 1.75 Original unrestored...

Category

Vintage 1960s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paint