Pluto aged 12

Maker

(artist)
1922-2011

Title

Pluto aged 12

Date of Production

2000

Medium

etching

Dimensions

Height: 57.4 cm (Sheet)
Width: 72.5 cm (Sheet)

Accession Number

G.2024.SP.11

Mode of Acquisition

HM Government Cultural Gifts Scheme, 2024

Credit

Accepted under the Cultural Gifts Scheme by HM Government from the archive of Studio Prints gifted by the Balakjian family and allocated to the Courtauld Gallery, 2024.

Copyright

Location

On display

Label Text

Marc Balakjian worked closely with Lucian Freud from 1986. Their sessions often began with coffee and informal conversation, which Balakjian called their ‘ceremonial starting point’. At times Freud would be accompanied by his dog Pluto, who in wintertime would warm his paws in a rag box prepared for him in the studio. Beloved by the artist, the dog became a frequent subject in Freud’s work, prized for his natural movement and ease. The hand at upper right is that of Freud’s studio assistant David Dawson.

Provenance

Studio Prints, London; accepted under the Cultural Gifts Scheme by HM Government from the archive of Studio Prints gifted by the Balakjian family and allocated to The Courtauld, 2024.

Literature

Treves, Toby, Lucian Freud : Catalogue Raisonné of the Prints. London : Modern Art Press, 2022.
Cat. 94 on pp. 234-235
pp. 13, 34, 36
This refers to the editioned print.

Inscriptions

Recto, lower left, graphite: 'Trial proof in brown black ink'

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