But it is the artist's portraits that are masterly. Intimate and penetrating of an inner as well as outer life, his portrayals of his daughter and male sitters cut to the quick. There is little happiness. There are two garden paintings as well as an etching of a garden, in which intertwining weeds, fallen leaves and tree branches suggest a dark haven. Lucian Freud in all his work reveals the cruelties and chaos of a civilization tainted by betrayal.
Privacy is out.
Even in imagery. In Conceptual art. Pipilotti Rist, the Swiss video artist, makes that clear. Come to the gallery, and sit on a couch that is part of the artist-constructed exhibition, listen to soft mesmerizing music, look at the videos beneath or on tables, in bottles, behind and before you. Of course what you see is not an exposed private life of the artist.