The artwork entitled “Study for portrait of Henrietta Moraes on a red ground” was created by the artist Francis Bacon in 1964. This piece aligns with the Expressionism movement and serves as a sketch and study genre of art, showcasing Bacon’s distinctive approach to portraiture that often involves emotional intensity and distortion.
The artwork features a striking use of color with a dominantly red background that contributes to the intensity of the scene. At the center of this study, the subject, presumably Henrietta Moraes, is depicted in a distorted and abstracted form, seated on a circular sofa-like structure with a white cushion. The woman’s figure is rendered with fluid, almost melting contours, and smudges of dark color accentuate her reclined form. Her face is particularly abstracted, contributing to the overall emotional charge of the piece and the Expressionist qualities of Bacon’s work. The white cushion appears to be an island of calm in the midst of the vigorous brushwork that defines the rest of the figure and the surrounding furniture. The artwork stands as a testament to Bacon’s exploration of the human condition through an unorthodox representation of form and psyche.