One of Britain’s greatest modern artists, Frank Auerbach, who came here as a child refugee from Nazi Germany, has died at the age of 93.
Born in Berlin in 1931, he was sent by his parents in 1939 to a private boarding school in England. They were later murdered in Auschwitz.
Frank Auerbach (b.1931), Head of Leon Kossoff, 1956-57, Charcoal and chalk on paper. Private Collection © the artist, courtesy of Frankie Rossi Art Projects, London
He was among the most illustrious of German-Jewish refugees who exercised a deep influence on British cultural life post-War.
Mentored by another celebrated Anglo-Jewish artist, David Bomberg, and friendly with another Leon Kossoff from their art school days, he enjoyed a career spanning seven decades, attracting the attention of critics with his first solo exhibition in 1956.
An exhibition of his portraits opened at London’s Courthauld Institute earlier this year.
Read more: Portrait of a refugee: looking back at the career of Frank Auerbach