Frank Auerbach, a prominent British artist known for his intimate impasto portraits, died on November 11th in London at 93. His death was confirmed by Frankie Rossi Art Projects in a press statement. Geoffrey Parton, director of the gallery, reflected on Auerbach’s legacy: “We have lost a dear friend and remarkable artist but take comfort knowing his voice will resonate for generations to come.”
Born in Berlin in 1931, Auerbach fled Nazi Germany for Britain in 1939. His parents stayed in Germany and soon after were tragically killed at the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1942. He became a naturalized British citizen in 1947 and pursued an arts education at Saint Martin’s School of Art during the day while taking additional night classes at Borough Polytechnic. He continued his studies at the Royal College of Art, graduating in 1955.
In the 1950s, Auerbach developed his unique approach to portraiture, characterized by thick, almost sculptural application of paint. His career flourished throughout the decade, underscored by his first solo exhibition at Beaux Arts Gallery in London in 1956. He also began teaching at the Camberwell School of Art.
By the end of the 1960s, Auerbach had become one of the foremost figures of the School of London, alongside contemporaries such as Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud. This group of artists gained prominence in the post-war era, particularly for practicing figurative painting in a time dominated by abstract and conceptual art.
Auerbach’s portraits frequently feature the same circle of models repeatedly. Perhaps the most celebrated are his portrayals of Estella Olive West, an actress with whom he had a long-term relationship. Notably, E.O.W. Nude (1953–54), on view currently at the Tate Britain, depicts the actress’s nude body rendered with thick brushstrokes against a black background.
After his inaugural solo exhibition, Auerbach staged regular shows with Beaux Arts Gallery and Marlborough Gallery, the latter of which mounted his first solo show in New York in 1969. His work gained further recognition when he became the subject of a major retrospective at the Hayward Gallery in London in 1978. Then, by 1986, Auerbach represented Britain at the Venice Biennale. There, he was co-awarded the prestigious Golden Lion prize alongside German artist Sigmar Polke.
In 2015, a retrospective of Auerbach’s work was held by London’s Tate Britain in association with the Kunstmuseum Bonn. His final solo show in the United States was mounted by Luhring Augustine in New York in 2021.
Auerbach received significant recognition this year. In February, the Courtauld Gallery hosted an exhibition of his large-scale drawings. Then, coinciding with the 60th Venice Biennale, art dealer Max Levai presented an exhibition of Auerbach’s paintings at the Palazzo da Mosto. Among the paintings were portraits of Julia Yardly Briggs Mills, a friend who modeled for Auerbach twice a week for four decades. Rounding out the year, Offer Waterman is currently mounting a solo show dedicated to the artist’s London cityscapes, on view until December 7th.
