Sam Francis

Bernard Jacobson Gallery is delighted to announce the opening of the exhibition Sam Francis, a collection of works by the renowned American artist. Francis was born in 1923 in San Mateo, California, and began to paint as occupational therapy whilst recovering from severe back injuries sustained as a fighter pilot in the Second World War. Between 1944 and 1946, confined to convalescence in Californian hospitals, Francis made studies of the shifting light of the passing day falling across the neutral confines of his wards - bringing life to the immaterial passage of light in a manner that can be traced right through to his final works. By the time he was discharged, it was to begin a degree in painting, rather than complete his war-interrupted studies in Botany, Medicine, and Psychology, at the University of California, Berkley. We can see his interest in botany and organic forms in earlier works such as Untitled SF50-062 (1950) and Composition (1953).

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