Sam Francis
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Biography
Born in 1923 in San Mateo, California, Sam Francis was an American abstract painter who turned to painting whilst recovering from severe injuries sustained as a fighter pilot in the Second World War. Francis later undertook a degree in painting at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1950, Francis went to Paris and enrolled at Fernand Léger's private academy. Over the next ten years, he split his time between Paris, New York, and Japan, absorbing influences from the New York School, Claude Monet, Henri Matisse, Pierre Bonnard, Clyfford Still, French Tachistes, and Zen calligraphers. His work, however, remains singular in its ability to fuse these influences with an approach to light and colour, structure and composition, which is uniquely his own. His work can be found in major international museum collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art in New York; Kunstmuseum in Basel; and the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
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Timeline
1923 Born in San Mateo, California
1944 Begins painting after being diagnosed with spinal tuberculosis
Late 1940s Begins experimenting with dominant Abstract Expressionism and Surrealism artistic styles
1949 B.A. University of California, Berkeley
1950 M.A. University of California, Berkeley
1950 Moves to Paris
1950 Creates his painting, Opposites, which becomes known as his first work offering his own artistic style that plays with abstraction and bright colours
1956 Time Magazine names Francis “the hottest American painter in Paris these days”
Late 1950s Begins incorporating more white in his paintings, which become relatively larger in scale during this period
1962 Moves back to California
1968 Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley
1973 Founds his own lithography production company and begins to publish his own prints
1975 Founds a wind harvesting and alternative energy company
1990 Founds the Sam Francis Art Museum
1994 Dies in Santa Monica, California
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Selected Exhibitions
195612 Americans, group show at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
1959 First Solo Exhibition, Pasadena Art Museum, Pasadena, California; travels to San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington
1961-1964 Documenta III, Kassel, Germany
1966 Sky Painting performance over Tokyo Bay, Japan
1972 Stanford University Museum of Art, Palo Alto, California.
1975-77Art in Progress, Louisiana Museum of Art at Humlebaek, Denmark; travelled to Centre Pompidou, Paris; Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm.
1985 Commissioned mural, San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA
1989 Master Prints from Collection, Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
1995 The Last Paintings of Sam Francis, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
1997 Sam Francis: The Archetypal Image, Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art, Pepperdine University, Malibu, California
1999-2001 Sam Francis: Paintings 1947-1990, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; travels to The Menil Collection, Houston, Texas; Konthall Malmö, Sweden; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain; Galleria Communale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome, Italy
2009 Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London, United Kingdom
2015 Sam Francis: A Survey of Graphic Work, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2017 Sam Francis, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2017 Sam Francis – Prints, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2023 Sam Francis, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2022 Mixed Show, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2024 8 Golden Square: Group Show, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2024 Summer Show, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
2025 Summer Show, Bernard Jacobson Gallery, London
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Works
Sam Francis
Untitled (SF86-764), 1986Acrylic on BKF Rives paper76.2 x 57.5 cms (30 x 22 5/8 ins)Signed and dated (verso)Exhibitions
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Prints I wish I had published
11 January - 9 February 2019In 1969 Bernard Jacobson opened his first London gallery – a fourth-floor walk-up on Mount Street, Mayfair, dealing in prints by international stars, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg, as... -
Some of the artists I have worked for
10 September - 5 October 2019To end the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the gallery, we are delighted to introduce a selection of works by the artists that helped shaping its success. -
Sam Francis
20 April - 27 May 2017Bernard Jacobson Gallery is delighted to announce a new exhibition of masterworks by the renowned Californian artist, Sam Francis, widely considered one of the most important artists of the post-war... -
Mixed Show
10 - 30 November 2022Bernard Jacobson Gallery presents a mixed show of gallery artists. Artists include Ivor Abrahams, Georges Braque, Paul Cézanne, Robyn Denny, Sam Francis, John Hoyland, Henri Matisse, Bruce McLean, Henry Moore,... -
Bonheur de Vivre
18 March - 27 May 2016Bonheur de Vivre is the result of long-held desire by Bernard Jacobson to present work by some of the great artists who have particularly inspired and sustained his own love... -
Sam Francis: A Survey of Graphic Work
27 November 2015 - 30 January 2016Bernard Jacobson Gallery is delighted to announce an exhibition of limited edition prints by American Abstract Expressionist Sam Francis (1923-1994). The exhibition presents a survey of the artist's entire graphic... -
Sam Francis
5 June - 29 August 2014Bernard Jacobson Gallery is delighted to announce the opening of the exhibition Sam Francis, a collection of works by the renowned American artist. -
Sam Francis: Works on Paper
11 November - 9 December 2009Whilst Sam Francis made many works on canvas, it is arguably on paper - with its direct luminosity and partial absorbance of pigment - that his work really comes into...
Art Fairs
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Art Basel | Hong Kong
17 - 20 May 2012 -
EXPO CHICAGO
20 - 23 September 2012 -
Art Basel | Basel
14 - 17 June 2012 -
Frieze Masters
17 - 20 October 2013 -
IFPDA Fine Art Print Fair
4 - 8 November 2015 -
London Original Print Fair
5 - 8 May 2016View Artsy Fair Booth -
Draw Art Fair London
17 - 19 May 2019View Artsy Fair Booth -
The Armory Show
8 - 11 March 2012
Publications
