Francis Bacon // Prints from the 1970s

During the 1970s, Francis Bacon evolved into a more introspective and refined style, reflecting the shift in tone that characterised his paintings of the same decade. Following the death of George Dyer in 1971, Bacon’s imagery became quieter yet more psychologically charged, often centred on themes of memory, loss, and time. His prints from this period revisit familiar motifs, but with a sense of distance and reflection, as if re-examining the past through a new lens.

 

Working closely with master printmakers, Bacon achieved remarkable control over tone and texture, translating the immediacy of his brushwork into the layered precision of etching and lithography. The results are works that feel both disciplined and deeply human, capturing the persistence of thought and emotion that ran through every stage of his career.