Lucian Freud

In 1964 Lucian Freud set his students at the Norwich College of Art an assignment: to paint naked self-portraits and to make them ‘revealing, telling, believable… really shameless’. It was advice that the artist was often to follow himself. Visceral, unflinching and often nude, Freud’s self-portraits give us an insight into the development of his style as a painter. The works provide the viewer with a constant reminder of the artist’s overwhelming presence, whether he is confronting the viewer directly or only present as a shadow or in a reflection.

Essays by leading authorities – including those who knew him well – explore Freud’s life and work, and analyse the importance of self-portraiture in his practice and the intensity that he maintained when studying his own.

Published to accompany an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, London (27 October 2019 to 26 January 2020) and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (22 February to 25 May 2020). The exhibition was organised by the Royal Academy of Arts, London, in collaboration with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.