"The art scene in London from the 1950s to the 1980s was characterised by a tremendous concentration of creativity. In contrast to the international art scene, painters such as Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Frank Auerbach, Leon Kossoff, David Hockney, Richard Hamilton, William Coldstream and R.B. Kitaj continued to work figuratively. Man and the mystery of appearance were the focus of their artistic interest. 120 works by 16 artists--some of them not previously shown--provide an extensive overview of the artistic dialogue that took place in London over the course of three decades"--Page 4 of cover.