Freud << froyd >>, Lucian (1922-2011), a German-born British painter, became famous for his paintings of nude men and women. Freud painted in the Surrealist style until the 1950’s, when he concentrated almost entirely on realistic nudes (see Surrealism).
A typical Freud nude shows a single figure casually lying on the floor or sprawled out on a bed or chair. Freud sometimes showed the subject with a pet or another animal.
Lucian Michael Freud was born on Dec. 8, 1922, in Berlin, Germany. His grandfather was the famous Austrian physician and psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud. Lucian moved to England in 1933 with his family after the rise of Nazism in Germany. He became a British citizen in 1939. Freud turned to painting in 1942. His early works featured Surrealist subjects—the placement of people, animals, and plants in unusual combinations. These early paintings are filled with symbolism and unexpected arrangements of the subject matter to reflect dreams and the subconscious mind.
Freud frequently painted horses, one of his favorite subjects. Freud also won acclaim for his drawings and etchings. He died on July 20, 2011.
