A brutality or roughness appropriately expressing both the artist’s
state of mind and the larger cultural sensibility characterized the work
of many European sculptors and painters.ALBERTO GIACOMETTI The sculpture of Swiss artist
Alberto Giacometti(1901–1966) perhaps best expresses the spirit
of existentialism. Although Giacometti never claimed he pursued
existentialist ideas in his art, his works capture the essence of that
philosophy. Indeed, Sartre, Giacometti’s friend, saw the artist’s fig-
ural sculptures as the epitome of existentialist humanity—alienated,
solitary, and lost in the world’s immensity. Giacometti’s sculptures of
the 1940s, such as Man Pointing (FIG. 36-2), are thin, virtually fea-
tureless figures with rough, agitated surfaces. Rather than conveying
the solidity and mass of conventional bronze sculpture, these se-
verely attenuated figures seem swallowed up by the space surround-
ing them, imparting a sense of isolation and fragility. Giacometti’s
sculptures are evocative and moving, speaking to the pervasive de-
spair in the aftermath of world war.FRANCIS BACONCreated in the year after World War II ended,
Painting (FIG. 36-3) by British artist Francis Bacon(1910–1992) is
an indictment of humanity and a reflection of war’s butchery. The
painting is a compelling and revolting image of a powerful, stocky
man with a gaping mouth and a vivid red stain on his upper lip, as if
he were a carnivore devouring the raw meat sitting on the railing sur-
rounding him. Bacon may have based his depiction of this central fig-
ure on news photos of similarly dressed European and American offi-
cials. The umbrella in particular recalls images of Neville Chamberlain
(1869–1940), the wartime British prime minister who frequently ap-
peared in photographs with an umbrella. Bacon added to the visceral
impact of the painting by depicting the flayed carcass hanging behind
the central figure as if it were a crucified human form. Although the
specific sources for the imagery in Paintingmay not be entirely clear,
the work is unmistakably “an attempt to remake the violence of reality
itself,” as Bacon often described his art, based on what he referred to
as “the brutality of fact.”^1JEAN DUBUFFETAlthough less specific, the works of French
artist Jean Dubuffet(1901–1985) also express a tortured vision
of the world through manipulated materials. In works such as Vie
Inquiète(Uneasy Life; FIG. 36-4), Du-
buffet presented a scene incised into
thickly encrusted, parched-looking sur-
faces. He first built up an impasto(a
layer of thickly applied pigment) of plas-
ter, glue, sand, asphalt, and other com-
mon materials. Over that he painted or
incised crude images of the type pro-
duced by children, the insane, and graf-
fiti scrawlers. Scribblings interspersed
with the images heighten the impres-
sion of smeared and gashed surfaces
of crumbling walls and worn pave-
ments marked by random individuals.36-3Francis Bacon,Painting,1946. Oil and pastel on linen,
6 57 – 8 4 4 . Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Painted in the aftermath of World War II, this intentionally revolting
image of a powerful figure presiding over a slaughter is Bacon’s
indictment of humanity and a reflection of war’s butchery.36-4Jean Dubuffet,Vie Inquiète
(Uneasy Life), 1953. Oil on canvas,
4 3 6 4 . Tate Gallery, London.
Dubuffet expressed a tortured vision of the
world through thickly encrusted painted
surfaces and crude images of the kind
children and the insane produce. He called
it “art brut”—untaught and coarse art.Painting and Sculpture, 1945 to 1970 9711 ft.
1 ft.
36-3A BACON,
Figure with
Meat,1954.