 Head VI was the first of Bacon 's paintings to reference Velázquez , whose portrait of Pope Innocent X haunted him throughout his career and inspired his series of " screaming popes " , a loose series of which there are around 45 surviving individual works . Head VI contains many motifs that were to reappear in Bacon 's work . The hanging object , which may be a light switch or curtain tassel , can be found even in his late paintings . The geometric cage is a motif that appears as late as his 1985 – 86 masterpiece , Study for a Self @-@ Portrait — Triptych . 
 Head VI was the first of Bacon <a href='null_genetive' title='1'><mark>'s</mark></a>paintings to reference Velázquez , whose portrait of Pope Innocent X haunted him throughout his career and inspired his series of " screaming popes " , a loose series of which <a href='dey_it' title='2'><mark>there</mark></a> are around 45 surviving individual works . Head VI <a href='uninflect' title='3'><mark>contains</mark></a> many motifs <a href='null_relcl' title='4'><mark>that</mark></a><a href='uninflect' title='5'><mark>were</mark></a> to reappear in Bacon <a href='null_genetive' title='6'><mark>'s</mark></a>work . The hanging object , which may be a light switch or curtain tassel , can be found even in his late paintings . The geometric cage <a href='drop_aux' title='7'><mark>is</mark></a>a motif <a href='null_relcl' title='8'><mark>that</mark></a><a href='uninflect' title='9'><mark>appears</mark></a> as late as his 1985 – 86 masterpiece , Study for a Self @-@ Portrait — Triptych . 
Head VI was da first of Bacon  paintings to reference Velázquez , whose portrait of Pope Innocent X haunted him throughout his career and inspired his series of " yellin popes " , a loose series of which it is around 45 surviving individual works . Head VI contain many motifs was to reappear in Bacon  wrk . The hangin object , which may b a light switch or curtain tassel , can bbfound even in his late paintings . The geometric cage a motif appear as late as his 1985 – 86 masterpiece , Study for a Self @-@ Portrait — Triptych .