Like many modern artists, John Bellany’s (1942-2013) canvases reflect his personal story – and his was a turbulent one.
Prone to severe depression and heavy drinking, he suffered a nervous breakdown in the 1970s. In 1988, he underwent a liver transplant (a ground-breaking procedure at the time) which prolonged his life for more than two decades. Among his most famous works was a series of large Expressionist self-portraits produced at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.