Frank Auerbach

Born 1931

Auerbach was born in Berlin. In 1939 he was sent to England to escape Nazism. During the 1950s he attended St. Martin’s School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London. He also studied with David Bomberg in night classes at the Borough Polytechnic. During this period he developed a friendship with fellow student Leon Kossoff. In 1986 he represented Britain at the Venice Biennale. His work revolves mainly around portraiture and the study of the human figure, often using close friends as models.