The Galerie Maeght was vitally important to the development
of Bacon’s career. He once said that above all else, the opinion that mattered most to him was that of the French intelligentsia. Above all else, he craved a major museum retrospective in
France, and he knew that a blockbuster show in a private Parisian gallery would
be the key to open this door.

Since opening in Paris in 1946, Maeght had attracted some of France's most important artists to its stable, including Braque, Chagall and Miró. Given the gallery's prestige in the Parisian art scene, it became clear to Bacon that the only possible venue suitable for the exhibition he needed was Maeght's palatial premises in Rue de Teheran. Helpfully, Bacon made the acquaintance of Maeght's third in command Jacques Dupin through a mutual friend in 1965, and the show was quickly set in motion. When it opened in November 1966, the exhibition featured twenty-five paintings, the largest display of Bacon's works in a private gallery. A huge success, it led directly to the career-defining retrospective at the Grand Palais in 1971 that Bacon had so coveted.

In addition to its gallery operations, Maeght has also established one of the 20th century's most important print workshops. They produced this poster in-house for the exhibition, working to an exceptionally high standard. It features Bacon's 1966 painting Lying Figure, painstakingly reproducing details in the paint with lithographic crayon and ink.