Freud (Back To Visual Basics)

<div class="margin-bottom" id="description_text_headlines"><div><strong>Unflinching truth</strong></div><div>&#160;</div></div><div class="description_text"><div>British artist <strong>Lucian Freud</strong>&#160;(1922&#8211;2011) was widely considered the most important figurative painter of his generation. Master portraitist and specialist in nudes, Freud used impasto to create depth and intensity while restraining his color palate to mostly muted hues. His portraits may be physically unflattering to their subjects, but they are honest, frank, and unapologetic. &#34;I paint people,&#34; Freud said, &#34;not because of what they are like, not exactly in spite of what they are like, but how they happen to be.&#34;</div><div>&#160;</div><div class="margin-bottom" id="series_text" style="display: block;"><div><strong>About the Series:</strong><br>Each book in TASCHEN&#8217;s Basic Art series features:</div><ul><li><div>a detailed chronological summary of the life and oeuvre of the artist, covering his or her cultural and historical importance</div></li><li><div>a concise biography</div></li><li><div>approximately 100 illustrations with explanatory captions</div></li></ul></div></div>

Sebastian Smee is art critic at the Boston Globe. He was born and raised in Australia and lived in London between 2000 and 2004. He has contributed essays to several books on Lucian Freud, and his articles have been published in The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian and The Spectator.