Sun 17 Jan 2021 02.00 EST
A year before his death in 1992, Francis Bacon quietly slipped into the Prado in Madrid, discreetly followed by its deputy director, Manuela Mena. There, he spent 90 minutes alone with its collection of Velázquez (it was a Monday, and the museum was closed). What did Mena make of Bacon, who was then 81, and in the habit of using shoe polish to colour his hair? âIâve never seen somebody so gentle,â she said. âHe looked you straight in the eye. He wanted to see who you are. He had⦠this
security in himself.â Bacon lingered longest, she recalled, in front of