Painter Frank Auerbach, who fled the Nazis and became a major artist, passes away aged 93

Frank Auerbach, a prominent 20th-century artist who fled Nazi Germany as a child and built a celebrated career in Britain, has passed away aged 93. Frankie Rossi Art Projects, his gallery, announced on Tuesday that Auerbach passed the previous day at his London home.

Auerbach was born in Berlin in 1931 and arrived in England in 1939, one of six children brought over by writer Iris Origo as part of the Kindertransport—a humanitarian effort that saved thousands of Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Europe shortly before World War II.

Just seven years old at the time, Auerbach would never see his parents again; both were later killed in Auschwitz. Decades later, Auerbach reflected on his past, telling a media organisation, “I’ve done this thing that psychiatrists disapprove of, which is blocking things out...life is too short, in my case, to brood over the past.”

Raised at a boarding school with other refugee children, Auerbach went on to study at St. Martin’s School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London, dedicating his life to painting. He worked in the same North London studio from 1954 until his death, reportedly painting 364 days a year.

Auerbach joined the School of London artists alongside Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, and Leon Kossoff, who focused on figurative art amid evolving artistic trends. He became known for his bold, thickly painted landscapes and portraits, often reworking pieces repeatedly until he achieved his desired effect. Speaking to the media earlier this year, he described the “eccentric thickness” of his paintings as an “involuntary byproduct” of constantly redoing each piece.

Auerbach began exhibiting in the 1950s but rose to fame in the 1970s. His first major retrospective was held at the Hayward Gallery in London in 1978, and he represented Britain at the 1986 Venice Biennale, winning the prestigious Golden Lion. His latest exhibition, Frank Auerbach: The Charcoal Heads, opened at the Courtauld Gallery in London in February.

His work gained high value in later years; in 2023, his painting Mornington Crescent sold at Sotheby’s for USD 7.1 million, setting a personal record.

“We have lost a dear friend and remarkable artist,” said Geoffrey Parton, director of Frankie Rossi Art Projects, “but take comfort knowing his voice will resonate for generations to come.” Auerbach is survived by his son, Jacob Auerbach.