Lucian Freud - by Martin Gayford (Hardcover)

About the Book

Larger-than-life British artist Lucian Freud enjoyed a career lasting over seven decades. He worked almost until the day he died, when he left a portrait of friend and studio assistant David Dawson unfinished. Now available for the first time in one elegantly combined edition, this acclaimed celebration of Freud's work from the 1930s to his death in 2011 includes hundreds of paintings, drawings, sketches, and etchings - even personal photographs and illustrated private letters. A comprehensive overview of his life and work in one luxurious volume, this book is a gorgeous addition to the shelves of art lovers everywhere. Created in collaboration with the Lucian Freud Archive and David Dawson, Director of the Archive, and edited by Mark Holborn. 1st ed. in two volumes: ISBN 9780714875262 (2018).

Book Synopsis

A sumptuous single-volume edition of Phaidon's acclaimed overview of one of the greatest painters of our time

Larger-than-life British artist Lucian Freud enjoyed a career lasting over seven decades. He worked almost until the day he died, when he left a portrait of friend and studio assistant David Dawson unfinished.

Now available for the first time in one elegantly combined edition, this acclaimed celebration of Freud's work from the 1930s to his death in 2011 includes hundreds of paintings, drawings, sketches, and etchings - even personal photographs and illustrated private letters.

A comprehensive overview of his life and work in one luxurious volume, this book is a gorgeous addition to the shelves of art lovers everywhere. Created in collaboration with the Lucian Freud Archive and David Dawson, Director of the Archive, and edited by Mark Holborn.

Review Quotes

'A massive Phaidon performance.' - The Times

'Comprehensive, scholarly and beautifully crafted.' - Country & Townhouse

'A comprehensive look at Freud's seven decade career.' - Hypebeast

Praise for the 2018 two-volume edition:

'Stunning ... Sure to delight those in search of a full picture of the artist's output. - Artists & Illustrators

'There is a precision and grandeur about this new monograph ... that is all of a piece with Freud's modus operandi. ... Gayford draws on his own back catalogue and the established sources ... to weave a fluent text that is footnote-free and cautiously expansive. ... Freud steps forward into sharper focus than we have seen before. We see more of the methodology by which he achieved a genius-reputation approaching that of his famous grandfather, creating a new genre of self-projecting portraiture while keeping his secrets close.' - Times Literary Supplement

About the Author

Martin Gayford is a writer and art critic for The Spectator magazine. He sat for a portrait by Freud, an experience recounted in Man with a Blue Scarf (2010).

Painter David Dawson is represented by Marlborough Fine Art, London. Freud's assistant from 1991 until his death, he was a frequent model for his paintings.

Mark Holborn is an editor, designer, and writer who has worked with many leading artists over the last 30 years.