Study for a Bullfight is a series of paintings made by Francis Bacon between the late 1960s and early 1970s, inspired by the bullfights the artist had attended in Spain and North Africa. In these works, the scene of the struggle between man and bull becomes a powerful metaphor for the violence and primordial instinct that govern existence. The arena is depicted as a circular, claustrophobic space, isolated by flat, luminous backgrounds.
The figures, bullfighter and animal, appear distorted, suspended in a vortex of dynamic tension, with rapid brushstrokes and blurred edges that accentuate the movement and brutality of the encounter. Red, the dominant colour, immediately recalls blood and exposed flesh, central elements in Bacon's poetics. With Study for a Bullfight, Bacon unites spectacle and tragedy, transforming the bullfight into a universal depiction of the conflict between life and death.
Unique quality material
Print on handmade Amalfi paper Sheet size: 29 x 42 cm (11.4 x 16.5 in) With frame: 31 x 44 cm (12.2 x 17.3 in) Material: artwork printed on very fine handmade Amalfi paper with deckled edges Frame: light brown beech wood and wood pulp, handmade
How an Amalfi art print is made, what the frame is like, what museum glass is, how long shipping takes, and how returns work: we’ve gathered all the answers on a single page.
