Smithsonian Channel Premieres FREUD’S NAKED TRUTHS Tonight, 7/3

Lucian Freud, the controversial grandson of Sigmund Freud, has been called "one of the greatest painters of the 20th century. His extraordinary portraits- of children, lovers, gangsters, supermodels, even the Queen of England - pushed the boundaries of art and broke world records at auction. They also enraged sitters and ended friendships." The royal photographer for The Times of London was so incensed by Freud's picture of the Queen that he said Freud should be thrown from the Tower of London.

The story of his life and work is the subject of FREUD'S NAKED TRUTHS, a new hour-long documentary premiering tonight, July 3 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Smithsonian Channel.

Freud, who died last summer, was notoriously elusive. Shortly before his death, however, he gave his full backing to this documentary. The film includes the only known footage of him painting on what turned out to be the last day he ever worked.

Timed to coincide with the arrival of a comprehensive Lucian Freud exhibition at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas, FREUD'S NAKED TRUTHS is both a definitive biography and a revelatory exploration of the creative process of one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. The exhibition travels from Britain's National Portrait Gallery, where it was the most popular paying show ever, staying open until midnight due to popular demand.

FREUD'S NAKED TRUTH'S includes candid stories from those who knew him and loved this remarkable personality. Members of his large family (he had at least fourteen children by a number of different women), and close friends – including Pop artist David Hockney, his sitters, his former lovers and models – recall for the first time a complex man who dedicated his life to his art and who, perhaps unsurprising for the grandson of Sigmund Freud, focused an unflinching eye into the physical and psychological frailties of his subjects. He rejected the artistic fashions of his time, sticking to figurative art and portraiture, especially uncompromising nudes, with a depth of scrutiny that produced some of the greatest works of our time.

Freud only achieved celebrity in his older age and was largely ignored in America until 1987, when the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum mounted a major exhibition of his work, after it had been turned down by several American museums. It propelled him on the international stage, and Freud would go on to see his art fetch record amounts at auction, including "Benefits Supervisor Sleeping," which sold at Christie's in New York for $33.6 million.

FREUD'S NAKED TRUTHS was produced by Blakeway Productions and directed by Randall Wright. Executive Producers for Smithsonian Channel are Linda Goldman and David Royle.

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