Lucian Freud and the portrait of relentless infidelity

Artist Lucien Freud and muse Perienne Christian

Julia Molony

He was a man who lived for his art, often to the detriment of his relationships, including those with his children. Now, as one of his offspring sues for a share of the estate, Julia Molony paints a picture of the famous artist who despite having 500 lovers often showed a cruel indifference.

A tireless (and fertile) womaniser, Lucian Freud once fathered three children with three different women within the space of one year. Freud was as careless with his many children as he was meticulous in his work. He formally acknowledged 14 of them, though it’s believed he fathered up to 30. He refused to ever live with any of his offspring. The mundane realities of parenthood would have represented a concession to convention too far for the last great bohemian artist.