Bacon Quotations

I always think of myself not so much as a painter but as a medium for accident and chance.

Francis Bacon

A selection of Bacon quotations on:

Photo of a wall at the Foundation with some of Francis Bacon's quotes displayed upon it.

A selection of Bacon quotations on:

Art

Anything in art seems cruel because reality is cruel. Perhaps that’s why so many people like abstraction in art, because you can’t be cruel in abstraction.
When you’re using oil paint, it can result in an effect that you cannot control. You can apply a blob of paint, turn the brush in one way or another, and that will produce a different effect each time which will change the whole meaning of the image . . . That’s also when something unexpected suddenly appears; it comes with no warning.
The greatest art always returns you to the vulnerability of the human situation.
After all, what is art about? It is trying to make something out of the chaos of existence.
I think perhaps that the greatest images that man has made so far have been in sculpture. I’m thinking of some of the great Egyptian sculpture, of course, and Greek sculpture too.
Francis Bacon in his studio, 7 Reece Mews, London, 1980, photo: Edward Quinn, MB Art Collection © edwardquinn.com
Francis Bacon in his studio, 7 Reece Mews, London, 1980,
Photo: Edward Quinn, MB Art Collection © edwardquinn.com