Product Description
No artist's studio rivals Francis Bacon's in terms of sheer iconic pungency. The artist's furious hurricanes of creativity were writ large upon its walls, scattered across its floors in a sea of paint pots, brushes, discarded canvases and much-abused source and reference materials, all of which seemed to bespeak Bacon's chaotically rigorous processes: bodybuilding snaps, reproductions of Muybridge time-lapse sequences, photo-booth self-portraits, magazine cuttings, tattered monographs, medical textbooks with images of unusual and often horrific wounds and diseases, and countless photos of friends such as Lucian Freud, John Deakin, Isabel Rawsthorne, Muriel Belcher and George Dyer, from which the artist built his portraits of them. Bacon's exceptional eloquence on the subject of his painting process, taken in combination with the iconicity and visual impact of his studio (now preserved at the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery at the Dublin City Gallery), enables his admirers to envisage something of how his paintings were made. In celebration of the centenary of Bacon's birth, and chiming with an exhibition at the Dublin City Gallery, A Terrible Beauty excavates Bacon's studio to reveal the methods, materials and processes through which Bacon arrived at his paintings. Drawing on the Hugh Lane's vast archive of materials, it gathers new scholarship and insights from Rebecca Daniels, Barbara Dawson, Marcel Fincke, Martin Harrison, Jessica O'Donnell, Joanna Shepard and Logan Sisley, and is a major publication for Bacon fans and scholars alike. ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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An account of the wild life of the celebrated English painter covers his childhood in Dublin; his years of gambling, drinking, and petty thievery; and the enormous genius expressed in his art. 12,500 first printing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

I Should Have Read This Book First!
I come to the Francis Bacon table very late in life. This year, 2009, marks his 100th birthday.

I remember the first time I saw a Bacon painting.I was totally shocked. Over the years I have not read about him nor cared.A few months ago I came across the British film, LOVE IS THE DEVIL.Rented it, loved it.Really wanted to get to know this artist. Derek Jacobi IS Francis Bacon. What a performance.You must see it for yourself. A young Daniel Craig plays his lover, George.Also an astonishing performance.

That said, I should have read this book before I watched the film.It would have made everything crystal clear for me.The author was a friend of Mr. Bacon over the years and knows where all the bodies are buried, so to speak. There are some nice personal photos of the artist and his friends, boyfriends.And he did have interesting friends and boyfriends!

His art still bothers me for the same reasons it bothers others.He is showing us our dark side.The side of ourselves we would rather not see or deal with.I have come to this conclusion after finally admitting to myself that his artwork is genius.There will be a large retrospective here in NYC this year of his work.I shall be attending it, I assure you.

I re-watched LOVE IS THE DEVIL last night and, because of this book, it meant so much more to me as I watched it unfold.The author obviously wishes he and Mr. Bacon had been closer in the end, but one of Bacon's men friends informed Mr. Bacon that Mr. Farson was writing this book and it deeply upset him.At one time Bacon had agreed to help Mr. Farson write a book of his life, but then changed his mind.So you can imagine how Mr. Bacon felt when he learned his friend had gone behind his back to a publisher and was writing it anyway.

This book is not about his art.It is about the artist.His early childhood will shock you.What his father did to him and had done to him is beyond child abuse.It made Francis Bacon who he became.We really don't know what happens in a person's life that really makes them tick, do we?Mr. Farson opens many doors to Bacon's mind.Some, perhaps, that should have been left closed.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is trying to understand Bacon, his art and his life.It will set you on the right path to learning everything you need to know.I am sure I will be re-reading this book over the years. Buy one before they go out of print or become so expensive you can't afford a copy. ... Read more

Product Description
The painting of Francis Bacon (1909-1992) defines the shattered self-image of Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War, and his wracked human figures are now basic to the twentieth century's visual lexicon. Clearing away all moral scaffolding, Bacon made room for what he called "the brutality of fact" to implode onto his canvases, paring back his subjects to animal function and bloodlust. In Bacon the figure is almost always isolated and pitched against an unforgiving interior lit only by a bare light bulb (one could write an interesting history of the light bulb in art, tracking its trajectory from, say, Van Gogh to Vuillard's lamplight, to the desolate hanging bulbs of Bacon and Philip Guston). Francis Bacon had few better critics of his work than himself--as witnessed in this superb statement of intent to David Sylvester: "What I want to do is distort the thing far beyond the appearance, but in the distortion to bring it back to a recording of the appearance." But one of the few writers whose sensibility he trusted was the French author Michel Leiris. Leiris shared Bacon's feel for nerve-end acuity in art, as his great autobiography Manhood attests, and with Bacon's sanction, wrote the essay for Poligrafa's landmark monograph of 1987, which also included a selection of 240 key paintings made by Bacon himself. That volume, an essential text for Bacon fans and scholars, is here revised and reprinted for the first time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Francis Bacon, full face and in profile
Though many reviewers and critics of this new edition of a 1983 book published in Spanish by the same name and by the same author are angry with the presentation of the Bacon paintings included, the simple fact that Michel Leiris' fine essay on Bacon, possibly the finest ever written, is once again available to the public more than makes up for the quality of the reproductions of the art.Leiris was in many ways Bacon's confidant, a man and a writer with whom Bacon shared his inner most feelings and life and stimuli for the paintings he created.Leiris writes with a quiet authority, with an immensely readable style, and offers more information about the real Francis Bacon than others - and the list of Bacon authorities grows all the time.

In this hardcover edition there is a quotation as a frontispiece that bears repeating.Georg Büchner: 'In everything I demand that there should be life, the possibility of existence, and then all is well; we are not then called upon to ask whether the work is beautiful or ugly.The feeling that what has been created has life comes before either consideration and is the only criterion in matters of art.'This, from the creator of 'Woyzeck'.After Leiris elegant essay the book contains a large number of Bacon's canvases.Even with less than perfect reproduction these works seem to take on new meaning, reflecting the information in Leiris' words.

This particular reincarnation of the 1983 book includes a full chronology of Bacon's life, a list of all the interviews recorded and a very complete bibliography that includes catalogues from exhibitions and an updated listing of all the public collections of the artist's works.Despite the flaws of production this book is well worth owning, especially since the Leiris essay is not otherwise available.Grady Harp, July 09

this book should be recalled
I absolutely agree with Kevin J. Mcfarland's comment: the reproductions in this book are of a very shoddy quality. A lot - not all of them but probably more than half - are out of focus (they honestly seem like blown-up copies of the images in the original). The color is also quite bad. Stay away from this book unless you're buying it for the essay. And publisher - this is an embarrassment.

Get the original folks!
Yes its true, this a reprint of a much more impressive book....and without reservation get that one, not this foggy weak shadow of the original.When I opened the package containing this book I was excited about a supposed new and improved Bacon book , minutes later the book was back in the package and returned. This reprint is NOT AS GOOD AS ITS ORIGINAL, I would say the print job is quite muddy compared to the 1983 version...so buy that one, it is still available...this is solid advice from a serious Bacon enthusiast, heed it .

A different slant
John Russell wrote this "biography" while Francis Bacon was very much alive and tends to emphasize the influences on Bacon's work more from an environmental standpoint than an art historian view.But to jump into Bacon's raucous life "in medias res" is a gift that now can be savoured, like picking the grapes off the vines that in years to come will become a fine vintage wine.A diversion, and only in black and white reproductions, but a rather important comment in retrospect.

Seek this Bacon volume!
This book on Francis Bacon is out of print but the good people at Amazon.com can help you find it.And if you love Francis Bacon then this book is a MUST for your library. Well written and gorgeous to view, this book more than most shows the less known works of the British genius of psychologically laden painting.The handsome book was a catalogue for the Smithsonian Institution exhibition in 1989 and 1990, before Bacon died. As for a collection of the master's best, look no further. ... Read more

Product Description
"Strikingly produced and limpidly written."—Library Journal

Francis Bacon famously found inspiration in photographs, film stills, and mass-media imagery. In Camera, a bravura accomplishment of original research, reveals how these new media informed some of Bacon's most important paintings and triggered turning points in his stylistic development.

Martin Harrison, who was granted privileged and unparalleled access to unpublished material from the archives of the Bacon estate, provides a new under-standing of the thought processes and working methods of the creator of one of the most compelling bodies of work in twentieth-century art. Throughout the book, sharp analysis leads to startling insights into this complex, tortured, and hugely creative artist and into the unique iconography of his art. With the aid of over 270 superb illustrations (200 in color), including a broad range of source images and documents, the book addresses important questions about Bacon's practice and reassesses key paintings to shed new light on his life and work. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A tool for artist looking at Francis Bacon
This book is an essential tool to better understand the process in which Francis Bacon produced his master works. As an artist, this book demystifies the painter while testifying his genius.

A Thoroughly Investigated Aspect of the Genius of Francis Bacon
It seems the number of books about British artist Francis Bacon, both biography and art monograph, grows each year, an indication of just how important this innovative and strange painter is in the spectrum of art history.IN CAMERA FRANCIS BACON: PHOTOGRAPHY, FILM AND THE PRACTIVE OF PAINTING is an erudite and fascinating work that opens previously sealed windows into the dark life and immensely controversial creativity of this daring genius.

Bacon, unlike most artists of his time and even of the present, had no problems discussing the fact that he utilized the art of photography in gathering information and inspiration for his huge canvases.Bacon saw the camera as a ready resource of information from which products he then could study, cut and paste, distort and wildly mix as the impetus of his own painted creations. But the extent to which Bacon immersed himself in the images he collected and deposited in the ungainly mess of his studio at 7 Reece Mews is now brought to light by author Martin Harrison.

Harrison not only understands photography's history and impact, he also understands painting.He wisely interviewed Bacon's last lover and inheritor of Bacon's estate until his death, John Edwards, and through Edwards' auspices Harrison gained access to many of the never before seen images that grace this book. Here are sketches, manipulated and notated photographs, photographic images of some of Bacon's destroyed canvases and plates of drawings and paintings not included elsewhere, making this volume of information invaluable to the Bacon devotees, no matter the number of volumes on their library shelves!

Harrison writes with the style of the scholar he is and at times the writing itself is rather dry and academic.But if the reader perseveres these thick passages of documentation, the reward is new knowledge of just how Bacon utilized photos, newsprint snaps, movies, and all manner of the camera's output to gain the spark of brilliance that resulted in his amazing output.The book is on the finest paper and is filled with superb reproductions of the photographic stimuli and the resultant paintings.This is an invaluable volume for the study of Bacon's art.Highly recommended. Grady Harp, January 06

A fascinating exploration of photography and painting
"In Camera" is one of the most interesting books on Francis Bacon, one of the greatest painters of the 20th century, ever published for several reasons: First, it takes good advantage of the meanwhile fairly large array of books, catalogs and articles which have been published on Bacon. Second, Harrison had access to materials, mainly photographs that have not been published before. Third, he was able to interview several persons close to Bacon, notably John Edwards, Bacon's last companion. Fourth, and most importantly, the book has a clear thesis that the author is able to present convincingly. It is Harrison's position that Bacon used mainly photographs either taken by photographers by his request or from books and magazines to the effect that they: "triggered decisive turning points in his stylistic development" (from book jacket).

In five chapters Harrison explores different type of media and images and how these affected Bacon's painting: Motion pictures, Interior Design, different artists such as Picasso and Michelangelo, the photography of Eadweard Muybridge, and the photographers that he hired to take photographs for him such as Deakin and Edwards. From the thousands of objects found in Bacon's studio at his death many were photographs from the above mentioned sources, but also taken from magazines and torn from books. Of these many had paint splatters and finger smudges in paint proving that Bacon used these for his paintings. A cut out photo of George Dyer, Bacon's lover from the 60's until his suicide in 1971 was even used as a template for several paintings. For many paintings Harrison shows the painting and the image or photograph that it was based on side by side. For example the Triptych (1991) used a front cover of "The Correspondent Magazine", a Muybridge photograph of mane wrestling, and a photo of Bacon. The book has over 270 excellent illustrations, of which at least 100 I saw for the first time and I own an extensive collection of Bacon books and catalogs.

The fact that Bacon used other images for inspiration does not mean that he merely copied these. One look at Bacon's paintings will prove that this is not the case. It is well-known that Bacon did not use models for his paintings and the images acted as catalysts for Bacon triggering other images, emotions or memories which then manifested themselves in his extraordinary paintings. Bacon was always reluctant to discuss the meaning of his paintings, insisting that they had none. Harrison goes farther than any book since the Sylvester interviews in proving that this is not the case and that the paintings were highly personal. The following two quotes from the end of the book are in my opinion right on the mark:

"..it should be remembered that most of Bacon's paintingswere explorations of selfhood". (p.228)

"He conveyed his inner life without compromise, but in code, in his paintings." (p.229)

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Bacon's art and Bacon the artist and man. The book is well presented, written and organized and the many images are fascinating. Though published by Thames & Hudson, it is printed and bound by Steidl an excellent German printer.

For more information on books about Francis Bacon, please see the listmania list I compiled. Readers are also welcome to email me for more information on Bacon books and web sites.

Review by Walter O. Koenig
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Product Description
This work elucidates the values and meanings that can be ascribed to Bacon's work, and discusses criticisms of Bacon by distinguished critics and philosophers. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Colors a bit off, but good overall
As in all titles in the Great Modern Masters series published by Abrams: Colors are not vibrant, often with a brownish tint or/and too dark, and their accuracy is just O.K. There are 64 pages of a good size 9.5x12 inches (24x30.5 cm). It begins with an introduction with 5-6 small b&w pictures on 2 pages, which is followed by a biography with 5-6 small b&w pictures on 2 next pages. The rest is dedicated to good size over 60 full color plates divided into chapters dedicated to artist's carrier periods, style directions, or themes, each described by 12-16 lines of text. The series is inferior to the same size paperback series published by Taschen in 1990s, but superior to Taschen's series of smaller sizes published latter. Unfortunately, the Taschen series does not cover Bacon, Botero, Brancusi, Braque, Calder, de Chirico, Johns, Kokoschka, Leger, Man Ray, Malevich, Modigliani, and Rouault this series does. ... Read more

Product Description
This entirely new classroom edition of Francis Bacon's great work of 1620, a founding document of empiricism and the scientific method, contains a new introduction and notes by translators/editors Urbach and Gibson. Index. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Best available edition of this classic text
Good translation of the original Latin by the great "renaissance man" and important English writer, thinker, statesman Sir Francis Bacon, . This is a seminal work in the origin of modern, empirical science. Scholars of renaissance culture will also find it valuable. Bacon's outline of the "idols" of thought (ways of thinking) that obscure truth is classic and still relevant. Bacon's "novum organum" or new science also includes perhaps the first description of the modern scientific method; formulate a hypothesis based on known data and then test it against the facts. Essential.

A gem!
Though somewhat obscure, this book should be more widely known and read. Very enlightening and well ahead of it's time. Terrific, readable translation. You'll never look at the world again in the same way! ... Read more

Product Description

Originally published in 1968. This volume discusses Francis Bacon’s thought and work in the context of the European cultural environment that influenced Bacon’s philosophy and was in turn influenced by it. It examines the influence of magical and alchemical traditions on Bacon and his opposition to these traditions, as well as illustrating the naturalist, materialist and ethico-political patterns in Bacon’s allegorical interpretations of fables.

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This ambitious and important book provides the first truly general account of Francis Bacon as a philosopher.It explores in detail how and why Bacon attempted to transform the largely esoteric discipline of natural philosophy into a public practice through a program in which practical science provided a model that inspired many from the 17th to the 20th centuries. This book will be recognized as a major contribution to Baconian scholarship of special interest to historians of early modern philosophy, science, and ideas. ... Read more

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"Ninety-five percent of people are absolute fools, and they're bigger fools about painting than anything else. . . . Hardly anyone really feels about painting: they read things into it--even the most intelligent people--they think they understand it, but very, very few people are aesthetically touched by painting."--Francis Bacon

Controversial in both life and art, Francis Bacon was one of the most important painters of the twentieth century. His monumental, unsettling images have an extraordinary power to disturb, shock, and haunt the spectator, "to unlock the valves of feeling and therefore return the onlooker to life more violently." Eminent writer and curator David Sylvester provides the definitive account of the career of an artist whose friend and collaborator he was for more than forty years. Drawing on his unparalleled personal knowledge of Bacon's inspirations and intentions, he first offers a critical overview of the development of Bacon's work from 1933 to the early 1990s, and then addresses its crucial aspects. Sylvester also reproduces previously unpublished extracts from his celebrated conversations with Bacon in which the artist speaks about himself, modern painters, and the art of the past. Finally, he gives a brief account of Bacon's life, correcting errors that elsewhere have been presented as facts. Accompanying the incisive and revealing text are reproductions of almost every Bacon work discussed, including twelve triptych fold-outs. The most complete work on Bacon yet, this book constitutes a portrait of one of the creative geniuses of our age by a writer of comparable distinction. 230 illustrations, 84 in color. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Through the glass, brightly
Few artists of the 20th century have engendered as much controversy while having such an enormous impact on coming to grips with personal demons on canvas as Francis Bacon.Once again the erudite scholar David Sylvester has written about his friend in a way that makes all other collections of images and gossips about Bacon pale in comparison.This book is a true "retrospective", not only because if can look at the entire output of this enormously gifted painter, but it puts Bacon in a perspective of comparison and study of influences that span all of art history. Sylvester manages all this with his usual eloquence of writing style.This book is an academic treatise, but is is also a biography that looks carefully and thoughtfully at the mad mind and paintings of Francis Bacon.Highly recommended for Bacon devotees as well as those who still seek to understand the past century's art journey.

Looking Back At Francis Bacon
A truly excellent addition to any art enthusiast's collection of artists' books and mongraphs.This piece is a must-have for any fan of the artist's work...it fills in quite a few holes regarding Bacon in relation to his work and his working process.Even if you are unfamiliar with the artist's work, you will find Sylvester's prose will easily entice you into taking a good long look at one man's dark, yet triumphant take on humanity and the world we live in.Brilliant! ... Read more

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BOOK DESCRIPTION

* Who was Francis Bacon, a genius of modern times?

* Why did he often use cyptic or 'secret' ways of communicating in his writings?

*Was he also a Master of Hermetic Wisdom?If so, how do we know this?

*Are we currently living in the beginning of Bacon's long-awaited 'New Age'?

Francis Bacon, the acclaimed but hidden 'chief' who led the wits and poets in Elizabethan and Jacobean England during the period that saw some of the greatest masterpieces of English literature created, is now revealed.For the first time, readers will see his many dimensions, how Bacon deliberately followed the path of the ancients, using drama, certain codes and ciphers, to lead people to self-knowledge and enlightenment --a New Age.Through special techniques, cryptic codes and ciphers, we learn more about the ancient wisdom embedded in his works and how we -- today -- may well be living on the cusp of the 'New Age' of enlightenment that Bacon envisioned long ago.

Bacon and the Pursuit of truth:

Bacon's work is founded on the perennial wisdom underlying the Bible.His work is known as THE SIX DAY'S WORK (of creation) guiding the seeker towards peace, prosperity and illumination based on love, understanding and service.

Bacon and Enlightenment:

This illumination or light is the wisdom of ages, synthesised from many sources into books, music, drama nad art by a group led by Sir Francis Bacon.

Baconand the Shakespeare plays

These were written as working examples forming part of Bacon's method for the discovery of truth.

Bacon and Discovery:

In this book, author and readers work together to explore the 'treasure trail' of clues that Bacon and his Rosicrucian group left in order that we, too, may learn, practice and develop the work even further, in the early 21st century. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Works of Francis Bacon
Works of Francis Bacon. Essays, Valerius Terminus of the Interpretation of Nature, The Advancement of Learning, The Wisdom of the Ancients, Novum Organum ... Published by MobileReference (mobi)

Kindle edition by MobileReference is sufficient for anyone who wants to learn about Bacon's contribution to empiricism and the scientific revolution. It is an especially valuable source for anyone who has to write a substantial research paper. ... Read more

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Francis Bacon, lawyer, statesman, and philosopher, remains one of the most effectual thinkers in European intellectual history. We can trace his influence from Kant in the 1700s to Darwin a century later. The Advancement of Learning, first published in 1605, contains an unprecedented and thorough systematization of the whole range of human knowledge. Bacon’s argument that the sciences should move away from divine philosophy and embrace empirical observation would forever change the way philosophers and natural scientists interpret their world.

Amazon.com Review
While he didn't exactly invent science, Francis Bacon is its best-known early promoter. The Advancement of Learning is his 1605 argument in favor of natural philosophy and inductive reasoning, and it is still vigorous and cogent today. Though using the language of Shakespeare, the book remains largely accessible to modern readers--still, a bit of classical knowledge is helpful.Shaking off the centuries-old domination of Aristotle, Bacon advocated building scientific theories on facts and observations rather than pure reason; little has changed in our approach to understanding the world since then. Of greatest interest to historians and philosophers of science, the book will also appeal to those curious about the underpinnings of today's naturalistic thinking. --Rob Lightner ... Read more

Product Description
The Essays, Bacon's chief contributions to literature, were published at various times between 1597 and 1625. This collection contains fifty-eight essays, masterfully written with a spirit of superior confidence. All forms of knowledge are subjected to the interpretation of Bacon's views on life. Compiled from his other works, the essays were intended only as private notes for the perusal of a few friends. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Wisdom summarized
Francis Bacon Essays can be considered the best manual for living in short form that has ever been written. However, this translation lacks footnotes. And since Bacon's sometimes makes references to terms and events that we are mostly unfamiliar with, as well as quotes in latin from time to time, it is impossible to derive the full effect of his writing without footnotes. I therefore would sadly recommend the penguin edition, which does have them. ... Read more

Product Description
Francis Bacon, one of the greatest painters of the twentieth century, speaks openly to his close friend Archimbaud about his life and art. The interviews took place in Bacon's studio just before his death in 1992. Francis Bacon was a self-taught painter and yet went on to become one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century, his startling studies of distorted figures in airless, enclosed spaces seeming to capture the alienation and despair of modern man. In this book he speaks frankly to his close friend Michel Archimbaud about the influences which have shaped his art. Bacon punctuates his answers with disparaging remarks about a whole host of artists including amongst others Rubens, Blake, Monet, Cezanne, Picasso, Shakespeare, Wagner and Debussy. Archimbaud's searching questions shed a new light on Bacon's work. These interviews took place in Bacon's studio between October 1991 and April 1992. They were to continue in Paris following Bacon's trip to Madrid but he died in Madrid on 28 April 1992. As such they can be seen as his last vision. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

if your an artist or lover of Bacon's work...
this is the best book so far to describe Bacon's thought's and inner working's of his creations.I bought this title in a book store, but wanted to say that it's hard to come by and may be out of print.If you want to know the artist, if choosing one book, this is the book to have. ... Read more

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Francis Bacon (1561-1626) is one of the most important figures of the early modern era.His plan for scientific reform played a central role in the birth of the new science.The essays in this volume offer a comprehensive survey of his writings on science, including his classifications of sciences, his theory of knowledge and of forms, his speculative philosophy, his idea of cooperative scientific research, and the providential aspects of Baconian science.There are also essays on Bacon's theory of rhetoric and history as well as on his moral and political philosophy and on his legacy. ... Read more