About Jenny Saville
British · 1970–present
- Contemporary
- New Figurative
Jenny Saville's large-scale paintings challenge conventional beauty, depicting the female figure with raw honesty.

Museums3
Countries2
Most worksNational Galleries Scotland, Edinburgh · 2 works
Loading map…
Where to see Jenny Saville
Ranked by works you can see in person.
-
2 works
National Galleries Scotland
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
-
1 works
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York City, United States
-
1 works
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Houston, United States
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I see Jenny Saville's work?
Jenny Saville's paintings and drawings are held in numerous public collections. These include the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Broad Art Foundation in Los Angeles. In Britain, her work can be found at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh and the Tate in London. Saville is represented by Gagosian, a multinational gallery with locations in New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Basel, Geneva, and Hong Kong. Her work is often included in their exhibition programmes. Saville's pieces are also frequently sold at auction. Major auction houses such as Sotheby's and Christie's regularly feature her work in their contemporary art sales. These sales take place in cities such as London, New York, and Paris. Checking museum websites, gallery listings, and auction catalogues will provide information on current and upcoming exhibitions or sales that include Saville's art.What should I know about Jenny Saville's prints?
Jenny Saville is known for her large-scale paintings and drawings. She has also produced prints, often in limited editions. A limited edition is when an artist decides to cap the number of prints produced. This decision is the artist's choice, not a technical requirement. The edition is limited by a written statement, usually in pencil, at the bottom of the print. This statement typically includes the print number and the total edition size (for example, 3/25 indicates the third print in an edition of 25). The title is written in the centre, and the artist's signature is on the right. Prints on paper are susceptible to environmental changes. Japanese paper, for example, should be stored interleaved with acid-free tissue in a drawer or box. Pigments can fade if prints are hung in bright light for extended periods. Some colours fade faster than others, altering the print's appearance. Vermilion can turn black over time. It is best not to hang prints over radiators or other heat sources.Why are Jenny Saville's works important today?
Jenny Saville gained international attention in the 1990s as part of the Young British Artists exhibitions. Best known for large paintings of women's bodies, Saville's work is important because it challenges historical, traditional, and cultural viewpoints on the representation of women. Saville often used herself as a subject in her early work, partly from convenience, but also to portray the female form from a different perspective in a male-dominated art world. Saville's paintings often feature exaggerated forms and, at times, surgical markings, resembling topographical maps. She observed a New York plastic surgeon in the operating theatre, incorporating these observations into her art. One such painting, *Plan*, depicts lines drawn on a woman's body for liposuction. Saville's work addresses cultural obsessions with the body. Her painting *Propped*, for instance, shows a nude woman in front of a mirror with scratched, inverted text. The woman's uncomfortable expression and posture suggest anxiety and an inability to reflect stereotypical images of beauty. Saville explained that she grew up in the 1980s, when body regulation became a significant cultural issue. Her art amplifies social issues, such as gender and race, prompting questions about identity and social constructs.What techniques or materials did Jenny Saville use?
Jenny Saville, born in 1970, is best known for large paintings of women's bodies. She often depicts fleshy figures with exaggerated elements, contrasting with traditional representations. Saville's technique involves thick impasto and fluid paint application. She uses subtle colour changes to create the appearance of mottled flesh. In works such as *Plan*, she painted women with surgical markings, resembling topographical maps. Saville observed a New York plastic surgeon in the operating theatre in the year she began that work. When working with oil paints, the drying times can cause problems. If the paint is over-brushed, the top layer will mix with the wet paint underneath, and this can result in the colour becoming muddy or chalky. One technique to manage this is called ‘tonking’, where the medium from the paint will have been removed. Saville's early success is attributed to Charles Saatchi, who commissioned fifteen of her paintings after spotting her work at the 'Critics' Choice' show in 1993.Who did Jenny Saville influence?
Jenny Saville's influence can be seen in the renewed interest in figural art during recent decades. Her paintings offer a commentary on social attitudes and prejudices related to the human body. Saville's work is often compared to that of Lucian Freud and Egon Schiele, though her focus differs. Saville exaggerates the girth of her figures and depicts heavy folds of flesh with visible veins. Her paintings challenge conventional representations of the body found in art and media. She explores themes of identity, social construction, and control over one's body. Some critics have described Saville's paintings as embodying a "feminist aesthetics of disgust". Saville's work has encouraged viewers to consider how external forces shape perceptions of their bodies. Her unflattering self-portraits, sometimes "branded" with words, highlight the difference between the perfect bodies of fashion models and those of most people. She challenges history, tradition, cultural viewpoints, and conventions related to the body.Who influenced Jenny Saville?
Jenny Saville's artistic development occurred within the context of broader movements and figures in art history. Expressionism, with its emphasis on subjective experience, is one such movement. Saville also emerged during a period influenced by feminism and postmodernism, both of which impacted art school curricula and artistic discourse. Saville's education at art school exposed her to various teaching methods, including expressionist and formalist approaches. The curriculum incorporated discussions of artists such as Henri Fantin-Latour. The writings of theorists like Michel Foucault also had an impact on the art world during this time. Saville's work can be situated within a lineage of artists who explored the human form, including Francis Bacon, Paul Cézanne, and Alberto Giacometti. These artists, like Saville, challenged conventional representations of the body.What is Jenny Saville's most famous work?
Jenny Saville is best known for large paintings of women's bodies. Saville studied at the Glasgow School of Art, and she also received a scholarship from the University of Cincinnati. Subsequently, Charles Saatchi offered her a contract to paint more. She gained international recognition in the 1990s, after being included in the Young British Artists’ exhibitions. Her 1992 oil on canvas *Propped* is among her most discussed works. It is a self-portrait showing a nude woman in front of a mirror. The painting challenges conventional standards of beauty. Saville has said that she grew up in the 1980s, when body regulation became a cultural obsession. The painting was displayed with a mirror hanging opposite it when first exhibited. The quotation scratched across the canvas is from an essay by Luce Irigaray, which discusses male-female relations. Saatchi purchased every work that Saville would sell to him after seeing *Propped*.What style or movement did Jenny Saville belong to?
Jenny Saville is associated with the Young British Artists (YBAs), a group who became prominent in the late 1980s and 1990s. The YBAs are known for their entrepreneurial attitude, use of shock tactics, and interest in popular culture. Saville's large-scale paintings often depict the female nude, challenging conventional representations of beauty and the body. Her work engages with themes of obesity, disfigurement, and the abject. Saville studied at the Glasgow School of Art from 1988 to 1992, and then at the University of Cincinnati. In Ohio, she was able to observe plastic surgery procedures. This experience had a marked impact on her artistic practice. While Saville shares some characteristics with the YBAs, such as a willingness to confront difficult subjects, her focus on painting and her engagement with art-historical precedents set her apart from some of her peers, who worked in diverse media. Her influences include Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon. Saville's work contributes to contemporary debates about the body, representation, and the gaze.
Sources
Where to See guide aggregates verified holdings of Jenny Saville's works across the following collections.
- [1] book Susie Hodge, ArtQuake Used for: biography.
- [2] book Susie Hodge, ArtQuake: The Most Disruptive Works in Modern Art Used for: biography.
- [3] book Hodge, Susie, 1960- author, The short story of women artists : a pocket guide to movements, works, breakthroughs, & themes Used for: biography.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-07-15. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
Editorial standardsMethodologyCorrectionsAI disclosureAbout the editorial team




