Sotheby's anticipates a strong showing at its contemporary art auction in New York this May, featuring Francis Bacon's notable 1966 work Portrait of George Dyer Crouching. This piece stands out as Bacon's inaugural full-scale, single-panel portrait of his muse, George Dyer. With a value estimate ranging from $30 million to $50 million, it is one of the most significant Bacon pieces to come to auction in recent years.
The painting depicts Dyer in a tense, crouched pose and incorporates a fusion of his and Bacon's facial features, an evidence of their profound relationship. This work led a series of ten full-scale Dyer portraits that Bacon completed from 1966 to 1968, with one lost in a fire.
Bought at Marlborough Gallery in 1970, Portrait of George Dyer Crouching has been in a private collection for over fifty years, making its debut in the market a rare opportunity for collectors and institutions. Bacon's portraits of Dyer have proven to command high prices at auction. A related 1966 piece from the same series, Portrait of George Dyer Talking, sold for £42.2 million in 2014, surpassing its high estimate. Though this new offering is not expected to reach the heights of Bacon's record auction sale of Three Studies of Lucien Freud in 2013, which achieved $142.4 million, it nevertheless represents a significant market event.
Francis Bacon, Three Studies of Lucien Freud, 1969
Sold at Christie's New York in 2013 for $142.2 million
Exhibited first at Bacon’s influential solo show at Galerie Maeght in Paris and later at his Grand Palais retrospective, Portrait of George Dyer Crouching holds a poignant place in history, as Dyer passed away just before the latter event in 1971. The piece was also featured in the recent "Francis Bacon: Man and Beast" exhibition at London’s Royal Academy of the Arts in 2022.
The painting is slated for a preview at Sotheby’s locations in Hong Kong, London, and New York, offering an international audience a pre-auction view of this remarkable piece. This sale is poised to not only reflect on the stature of Bacon's work but also on the dynamics of art valuation and the market demand for masterpieces of this caliber.