The Royal College of Art Offers Rare Print on Lucian Freud's John Minton
LONDON – August 30 2016 – The Royal College of Art has today announced that one of Lucian Freud’s most notable works, and one of the jewels in the college’s collection, John Minton, 1952 has been made available as a full size reproduction in an edition of 500 digital prints thanks to independent publisher HENI and the Lucian Freud Archive.
The prints (diasec mounted on aluminum) will be sold through HENI Productions and the proceeds will go towards the RCA’s scholarship funds to ensure that the world’s best and brightest art and design students are able to study at the RCA, the world’s number one University for Art and Design.
Described by art historian Frances Spalding as ‘one of [the] century’s most emotional portraits’, John Minton commissioned the portrait after seeing Freud’s 1952 portrait of Francis Bacon. The portrait combines the raw technical brilliance and emotional acuity that are representative of Freud’s maturing style. Each print is available for £1,250 (plus VAT).
Minton (1917–57) was a tutor at the RCA between 1949 and 1956 – a role he combined with an active practice as an artist and illustrator – having been a key figure of Neo-Romanticism in the 1940s. This portrait holds a unique place in the Royal College of Art’s Collection, both for its outstanding quality and its subject, whose influence was felt over a generation of artists. Fellow painter Bridget Riley remembers: ‘the warmth and heart of the school was John Minton, whose compassion, sophistication and wit were immensely reassuring. You realised at once that the problems he faced were in essence common ones. He was much loved by the students.’
Minton bequeathed the painting to the RCA in 1957 when he took his own life. He had left the college in 1956, and Sir Robin Darwin, then Rector and Vice Provost, wrote to The Times mourning his loss saying ‘Minton had the shrewdest and most perceptive understanding of the problems confronting a painter today. He never deceived himself.’
Dean of Fine Art, Professor Juan Cruz, RCA says ‘It is thanks to the trustees of the Freud archive, Bridgeman Images and HENI that we were granted the exceptional opportunity reproduce this, most treasured, painting from the RCA Collection as a print of such outstanding quality. The painting resonates with many people on many different levels; for me, it is the realisation of the relationship between artist and model, as Freud has so tenderly captured both sides of Minton – the gentle and generous teacher, and the pensive outsider.’
Website link: http://www.rca.ac.uk/freud-minton
ENDS
For further information or images please contact Bethany Bull, RCA Press Office on t: +44 (0) 20 7590 4114, e: [email protected], or [email protected]
Notes to Editors
For public information, or to purchase a print, please email [email protected]
Print details:
John
Minton
Lucian Freud (1922–2011)Â
1952
Diasec mounted giclée print on aluminiumÂ
(Original: oil on canvas)
Limited edition of 500, numbered
41 x 26 cm
£1,250 + VAT
Published by the Royal College of Art, London, and Heni Productions, 2016
Copyright: The Lucian Freud Archive / Bridgeman Images
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The Royal College of Art is the world’s leading university of art and design, placing at Number One in the 2016 and 2015 QS World University Rankings. Specialising in teaching and research, the RCA offers the degrees of MA, MPhil, MRes and PhD across the disciplines of applied art, fine art, design, communications and humanities. There are over 1,500 Master’s and doctoral students and more than 1,000 professionals interacting with them – including scholars, art and design practitioners, along with specialists, advisers and distinguished visitors.