Sam Francis

Heart Stone

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Sam Francis, 1923–1994
Heart Stone (1963)
Colored lithograph on paper
63 x 90.5 cm
Acquired by Bayer in 1965
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2007

Sam Francis’s career as a painter began with a personal tragedy. As a USAF pilot he crashed towards the end of World War II. He was so badly injured that he had to spend years in hospital. During that time he discovered a passion for painting. Restored to health, instead of continuing his studies of medicine and psychology he began studying art at the University of California.

In 1950, he moved to Paris, where he quickly made contact with artistic circles. A typical feature of his pictures during this period is paint that flows freely to form trickles. In 1952 a Paris gallery staged the first exclusive exhibition of his works.

In 1957, Sam Francis travelled around the world. During a stay in Japan he was commissioned to paint a large mural. This was followed by similar works at the Kunsthalle Basel and the Chase Manhattan Bank in New York.

In the 1970s, after a creative block, Francis changed his style. He took up action painting and became famous in this field. He also turned to techniques such as lithography, monotype and etching. During this period he created multi-part compositions in which the colours sometimes blend into one another. In his final years as a creative artist he produced some remarkable commissioned works, mainly murals.

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