MuseoMag: MuseoMag 2025_01

MuseoMag 2025_01

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Title:: MuseoMag

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Title:: MuseoMag 2025_01

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Title:: Wrestling with queerness: Francis Bacon's Two Figures

27 N°I 2025 MuseoMag MODERN ART © The Estate of Francis Bacon. All rights reserved, DACS/Artimage. Photo: Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd Francis Bacon, The Wrestlers after Muybridge, 1980, oil, aero- sol paint and dry transfer lettering on canvas, Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation, Los Angeles freedom in a restrictive society and engages with the notion of queer selfhood in complex ways, building up a queer visual vocabulary all while being policed by gallerists and museums. It is interesting to note that Bacon returned to the motif of the wrestlers later on in his career. The Wrestlers after Muybridge (1980) explicitly re- ferences his purported original source, yet is a real departure in terms of style, the entangled men ren- dered much more minimally than in his works from the early 1950s. The upper figure’s detached left arm resembles that of a mannequin with hollows at the wrist and shoulder joints, whilst the lower figure’s facial features are reduced to an ear and an open mouth with visible teeth. The colour palette, too, is very different from the sombre tones of the earlier works, with hot pink and bright yellow accents. Bacon’s figures appear to grapple in a white cube gallery. The red writing on the wall behind them has been all but erased, underscoring the ambiguity of the painting where something is simultaneously visible and invisible, partially erased yet still recogni- sable. In this evolution of the wrestling motif, how- ever, Bacon’s subjects seem to have moved out of the shadows of covert intimacy to claim a more public space, heralding a shift in the representation of queer relationships in art. A QUEER VISUAL VOCABULARY Bacon’s work not only reflected his personal ex- periences and the challenges of his time but also pushed the boundaries of what could be publicly explored in art. By portraying intimate and coded depictions of queerness, he carved out a space for defiance within a largely hostile societal framework. His art invites us to consider how visual culture can challenge norms, making his practice as powerful today as it was provocative in his lifetime. Katja Taylor Visit the museum’s modern and contemporary art section to see Francis Bacon’s depiction of queer love in his stunning triptych Three Studies for Portrait of George Dyer (1963). This display is free to visit at any time. Join cultural critic Vera Herold for a free guided tour about queer aspects of Bacon‘s practice on 13 March at 6 pm. Join art historian Nathalie Becker for a free guided tour exploring the concept of the sacred in Bacon’s work on 27 March at 6 pm.

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