Lucian Freud (1922 - 2011)

Lucian Freud – hailed as one of the leading artistic figures of his generation – has died aged 88. It was announced last night that Freud died at home in London on Wednesday after a short illness. The grandson of notorious psychoanalayst Sigmund Freud, Lucian was particularly known for his nudes, which commanded millions of pounds at auction.

Roderick Mills, an illustration tutor at the University of Brighton and a friend of It’s Nice That told us: “I guess the influence was less aesthetic, but rather the intensity of his stare – to study a subject matter, to fully investigate something visually.

“In an age over-saturated with imagery his focus/obsession was intense – something you encourage students to appreciate in life drawing sessions is to look, not just a vague scan of the figure in front of you, but to observe a figure, the person, the atmosphere of the moment.

“One of those true obsessives who daily went to the studio to paint, who had a practice – once again something you try to encourage students to have!”

Illustrator Marion Deuchars was similarly saddened by the news. She said: "I went to a Scottish art school in the 1980s and everyone seemed to be drawing or painting figuratively – Freud’s influence was omnipresent. A group of Scottish painters known as the “New Glasgow boys” like Steven Campbell, Ken Currie, Peter Howson and Adrian Wiszniewski were causing a bit of a stir in the art world with their interest in portraying the human figure at a time when American abstraction, pop and conceptual art dominated Western art. Freud was without doubt, one of their main influences. I know 88 is seen as an acceptable age to pass away, (a good innings, one might say), but for someone like Freud who was so prolific, I would say 108 would have been better.

“I really love Freud’s paintings. Some of his early ones in particular Girl with a kitten made a big impression on me.”

RIP Lucian.