The Estate of Francis Bacon/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, DACS, London
ARTIST Francis Bacon
TITLE 'Figure Writing Reflected in Mirror'
AUCTION HOUSE Sotheby's
ESTIMATE $30 million to $40 million
THE market hasn’t seen a record-breaking price for Bacon since the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich bought his 1976 “Triptych” for $86.3 million at Sotheby’s in May 2008. Since then prices have not come anywhere near that sum, but neither have the offerings. Now, on May 9, Sotheby’s is selling a 1976 canvas depicting a male figure who is thought to be the artist’s lover, George Dyer, who committed suicide in 1971.
The painting was the star of a 1977 exhibition of Bacon’s work at the Galerie Claude Bernard in Paris. It was the cover image of the show’s catalog and hung alongside the record-breaking “Triptych.” “It was such a popular show they had to close off the street,” said Mr. Meyer, who added that this painting is creating considerable buzz. One reason is that it has not been on the market for 35 years. Another is the painting itself, with the hypnotic reflections of the man in the mirror and on the floor.
Mr. Forstmann bought the painting in 2001 from the Acquavella Galleries in New York.
