This item was one of three separate images made for the triptych. There was another smaller version of this work, made in an edition of 99 signed and numbered proofs, which showed all three images on one single sheet.

The triptych is one of the last in a series that Bacon painted following the suicide of his long-time companion George Dyer in 1971. The present work is the left panel which shows Dyer struggling on a beach and in this panel he is under the protection of an umbrella.

The original painting was sold to J.P Mouiex who, until his death in 2003, was the owner of Chateau Petrus, the famous Bordeaux wine label that is currently one of the most expensive in France. Bacon had once painted a portrait of Moueix in return for which the artist could drink as much Petrus as he wished during his lifetime.