this catalog accompanies the exhibition Myths retold: paintings by rosemarie Beck (April 17 May 13, 2023) organized by the Museum of Art of the University of New Hampshire.
Museum of Art
University of New Hampshire Durham, New Hampshire
Unless otherwise noted, all rights reserved
Copyright 2023 Museum of Art of the University of New Hampshire
Cover image credit: rosemarie Beck (American, 1923–2003), Daedalus and Icarus, 1984, oil on linen, 50” x 64”
Myths Retold: Paintings by Rosemarie Beck is made possible by the Rosemarie Beck Foundation’s gift of eight paintings and four studies representing scenes from The Tempest and classical mythology. The Dion Janetos ’39 Fund for Hellenic Studies provided generous funding for the publication of this catalog featuring an insightful essay by Professor R. Scott Smith, Department Chair, Classics, Humanities and Italian Studies, and the contributions of students in CLAS 601: The Power of Myth taught by Senior Lecturer, Paul Robertson.
The exhibition presents paintings and embroideries by Rosemarie Beck (1923–2003) who abandoned abstract expressionist painting in the 1950s and turned to figurative painting. For the remainder of her career, Beck depicted the complicated narratives of women in literature and Greek mythology.
The collection of the Museum of Art of the University of New Hampshire is shaped in part by artists associated with Boston Expressionism, a regional movement marked by an exploration of social, historical, and political themes underpinned by a humanist philosophy expressed figuratively. The movement coalesced in the 1940s and persisted into the 1980s through the teachings of second and third generation Boston Expressionist artists, including faculty at the University of New Hampshire
who acquired and exhibited work of their contemporaries. Although Beck lived in New York and her career progressed independently from Boston Expressionist artists, she shares with them a Jewish-immigrant heritage and a propensity for figurative storytelling. Her paintings similarly display imaginative use of brilliant color, bold lines, and virtuosic handling of paint and brushwork characteristic of artists associated with the movement.
If Beck’s legacy of figurative-narrative painting is compatible with the formative core of the Museum of Art’s collection, so too is her teaching philosophy, transmitted by one of her former students, Professor Brian Chu who has taught painting and printmaking at the University of New Hampshire since 2000. Developing from Beck’s close reading of literature and Greek mythology, and the continuum of her approach to teaching, Myths Retold: Paintings by Rosemarie Beck prioritizes the interdisciplinary teaching utility of art to deepen student understanding and enrich engagement with primary sources.
Kristina L. Durocher, Director Museum of ArtIn the Prado Museum in Madrid there hangs, prominently against a back wall, a painting by the Baroque master Diego Velázquez (1599–1660) called The Spinners. It is a complex and masterful work of art. In the foreground two women spin yarn, an older woman to the left, a younger woman to the right. They are accompanied by three attendants, two helping the spinners and another who seems to be pulling back a curtain to reveal the painting itself. A quiet domestic scene, to be sure, but there is much more to this painting. In the background sits a smaller frame. In it, an armed woman raises her hand aggressively at a young woman, both of whom stand before beautiful tapestries on display. Because this scene is smaller and recessed, a viewer might pass over it but for the fact that it, and not the foreground, holds the key to understanding the whole painting. The armed woman is the goddess Minerva (Athena), who was disguised as the old woman in the foreground. The young woman is Arachne (“Spider ”), the arrogant girl who dared to claim that she could weave better than the goddess and won by weaving a tapestry picturing the gods’ injustices against humanity, especially those against women. In fact, the tapestry displayed behind Arachne on the back wall depicts one of these scenes: Jupiter ’ s forcible abduction of the maiden Europa while disguised as a white bull, a clever “ copy ” of the famous painting by Titian (ca. 1560). But
Arachne’s victory was also her downfall. What Velázquez did not show was what happened next: Minerva beat Arachne until the poor girl hanged herself by a noose and was turned into a spider by the goddess to live out her life as a very different sort of spinner (Ovid, Metamorphoses 6.129–145).
This masterful painting, with its attention to critical points in the narrative, is an appropriate entrée into the works of Rosemarie Beck, a painter and embroiderer of the highest order who also constantly found inspiration in the rich story world of Greek myth. Time and time again, Beck returned, like so many others, to the characters and stories that have resonated in later times in music, art, and literature from Renaissance paintings to Disney ’ s Hercules and the Percy Jackson novels. It is also no wonder that Velázquez’s painting was one of Beck’s favorites. Erudite and allusive, it forces the viewer to engage with the fuller myth and to meditate on the fragility of the human experience.
Velázquez’ painting, then, embodies the tragic worldview of the ancient Greeks and Romans, where human actors, for all their successes and achievements, can be punished justly or
unjustly by the gods and the world around them. It was a tragic view that Beck seems to have shared:
I’m distrustful of the bromides prevailing regarding our duty or right to be happy, well-adjusted, self-fulfilling. In fact, from my own experience, the tragic view is the only tenable one. I am an enthusiastic pessimist… (interview with Sawin 2001–2)
Greek myths always had a dark pall hanging over their human actors. Death, rape, incest, loss, and suffering frequently served as the backbone of Greek storytelling, whether in the epic poems of Homer, in the tragic plays that were the intellectual currency of 5th-century BC Athens, or even in the myths parents told their children. There was greatness, too, but even the greatest Greek hero, Heracles (Hercules), lived a life of suffering and torment that ended at the hands of his own jealous wife, and the unstoppable warrior Achilles’ short life was brought to an end though pain and loss loss that he himself caused because of his ego. Greatness and happiness were not interconnected, not by a long shot.
For over thirty years Beck engaged with the stories of Greek myth, often dwelling on one myth for years at a time and producing a prodigious number of drawings, paintings, and embroideries of it. Starting in the 1970s, she took on a series of paintings focused on Orpheus and his wife Eurydice’s tragic death and near rescue the musician Orpheus must have appealed to Beck given her musical background. In the 80s she turned to what I would call an “Ovid Cycle,” which drew on the deeply influential series of myths told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. This period started with Apollo and Daphne (1981– 84) and continued with Diana and Actaeon (1982– 86), Daedalus and Icarus (1983– 85), and finally Atalanta and Hippomenes (1985– 88). In the late 80s and early 90s she turned to Greek tragedy proper, perhaps reinforced by a trip to Greece in spring of 1990, composing two series of paintings, first on the tragic death of Antigone (1987–1994, from Sophocles’ play
Antigone), then on Phaedra’s suffering and death (1998–2002, from Euripides’ Hippolytus). She had already in the 70s been taken by another tragedy, Shakespeare’s Tempest, exemplified by the brutal tale of Caliban and Miranda, also on display in this exhibition.
Beck’s last great cycle involved the story of Phaedra, the wife of the hero Theseus of Minotaur-slaying fame. Phaedra famously lusts after her stepson Hippolytus, wrestles with that desire, and tries to suppress her dark secret, only to have her wellintentioned but wrong-headed servant reveal it to the young man. Hippolytus, a hunter dedicated to the virginal goddess Artemis, is horrified. The secret out, once-lovesick Phaedra is now mortified and commits suicide but only after writing a letter accusing Hippolytus of attempted rape in an attempt to save her reputation. We can, in fact, see the genesis of Beck’s interest and in the Phaedra myth and its evolution. In her diary of April 9, 1998, she writes:
Now at 74 I’m going officially to begin my Phaedra paintings. These will be my last. I hope I can make several before it’s “curtains.”
“Curtains” is an appropriate metaphor since the Phaedra myth is best known from dramatic plays, not only its earliest incarnation in Euripides’ famous Greek play Hippolytus, but also from Seneca’s Latin version (Phaedra) and Racine’s French adaptation (Phèdre). Although Beck draws from several sources, we are fortunate to have in her archives a well-worn copy of Euripides’ Hippolytus (trans. David Grene in Greek Tragedies, vol. 1, ed. By D. Grene and R. Lattimore), which is annotated and features over ten line-drawn sketches, tableaus representing Beck’s visualization of the text. Perhaps most pertinent is her sketch of the lovesick Phaedra being cajoled by her old handmaid, a scene Beck sketched (Sketchbook #1971 from 1996–7), embroidered, and painted several times:
The composition, with Phaedra surrounded by attendants, is found in Beck’s studies and full-sized paintings (#1750, Phaedra 2001, #1677, Phaedra 1999). In these, Phaedra is facing upwards, ill but alive; in another painting we find a prone Phaedra, dead, her accusatory letter lying at the foot of the bed (#1777, Phaedra 2002) the result of her handmaid’s fateful conversation with Hippolytus (depicted in #1760, Phaedra 2002). Like Velázquez’s Spinners, this scene requires the viewer to engage with the fuller narrative and understand that the young man to the left, attended by his hunting dogs, is Hippolytus, who has rejected her and will later be killed when Theseus (the old man behind Phaedra) calls down curses on his son. Of course, Beck could not help but to add further details tied to the narrative, such as Hippolytus’ dog and Phaedra’s child in the foreground.
Even if Beck thinks about a play in visual terms, then, she is drawn to myths not just for their potential as images but also as tragic narratives. Several times in her journals she refers to “myths and narratives” as inspiration for composing a painting (Aug. 1983, Sept. 6, 1989), which present the artist with striking material to explore the tragic side of human life, where the “complexity, multiplicity, ambiguity represent good in a work of art, for it means you get a different meaning on every occasion” (diary, June 11, 1991).
Greek myth itself is by nature complex, multiplex, and ambiguous, which is the precise reason why it afforded the ancient Greeks and Beck the raw material to explore the human condition, to expose the tensions between right and wrong and between good and evil, and to dwell on the helplessness of humans in a hostile world. Beck certainly saw the same potential:
And in Phaedra the human misery the helplessness of human creatures and the gods screwing them up so. And then there are these heroic women characters. Phaedra is not very nice. Antigone was good. (Samet 2002: 17–18).
Beck constantly seeks the moments that embody a story, and these tend toward the dramatic, certainly reflecting her dramatic training in high school and at Oberlin College: Icarus plummeting from the sky, Antigone being led into the cave to her death, Actaeon spying on the goddess Diana, Orpheus mourning his dead wife or the Thracian women mourning his. In each, the power and universality of Greek myth resonates throughout time emphasized by Beck’s insistence on putting mythical figures in modern dress reminding us that, for all our progress, we still continue to wrestle with the human experience. One final comment from Beck sums it all up:
The question is why paint myths and legends today. And the answer is obvious. … We don’t even have any choice. ... I find myth erupting like a plague for we are not separate from these things. The eternal legends are still in us from Oedipus to Orpheus to the Cross. These are...the perennial undercurrent of existence. They have to do with self and other, with loss and recovery, with stasis and metamorphosis. (quoted in Samet 2010 : 138)
Bibliography
readers interested in Beck’s career are invited to consult Martica sawin’s essay, “rosemarie Beck: Never form but forming,” in rosemarie Beck paintings 1965–2001, pp 4–7, available online i am indebted to Doria Hughes, archivist for the Beck foundation (and Beck’s granddaughter), who provided me with entries from Beck’s diary and the transcript of a 2002 interview with Jennifer samet, whose 2010 dissertation (painterly representation in New york, 1945–1975, pp. 127–138) also includes biographical information
UNH students played a crucial role in the exhibit you ’ re seeing today. Most prominently, they wrote the labels next to each piece of art. Those brief little descriptions that tell you what you ’ re looking at they take a lot of work. The label writer not only must master both painting and the myth behind the painting, but they also distill a vast amount of knowledge, ancient texts, and modern theories into a mere seventy words.
Students also wrote the longer entries for each painting in this very catalogue. Here, instead of merely describing the painting, they must use their own expertise to guide the viewer. They become storyteller of myth, interpreter of paint, and historian of context. They explain the myth behind the painting, which in some cases is found in a huge variety of sources across hundreds of years, in Greek and Latin. They show the viewer how Beck follows a particular ancient account, or departs from it, and what this might mean. And they point to important features in the painting to invite the viewer to a deeper view: Beck’s brushstrokes around a particular figure, or her choice of color, or the placement of characters and their body language.
Both the labels and the longer descriptions in this catalogue were part of a course I teach, “ The Power of Myth.” Offered in the Department of Classics, Humanities and Italian Studies, this is an advanced course that builds on students’ prior work with Greek and Roman mythology. Whereas our “Introduction to
Classical Mythology ” teaches the foundational stories of ancient Greek and Roman gods and heroes to several hundred students a year in a large lecture hall, “ The Power of Myth” is taught to just twenty students at a time in a seminar-style discussion class. I teach the course differently every time, creating a syllabus where the students work with me as co-researchers on projects. In past years, students in this class helped me write a book on the Cyclops. This year, the UNH Museum of Art’s reception of the Rosemarie Beck paintings was a stroke of great fortune, giving each student the opportunity to research a single work of art in great depth, joining their knowledge of ancient mythology to an important painter of the 20th century.
An undergraduate professor my own once told me that, if you ’ re lucky, your students become your teachers. This has never been more true than with this course and these students for this exhibition . They have spent weeks reading ancient Greek plays and Roman novels, and analyzed them alongside essays about Beck ’ s own life, work , and style. They have pored over dozens of Beck ’ s other works to make sense of ambiguous shapes, learned often from scratch how to write museum labels, and condensed a vast body of research into the highly readable, informative, and insightful information you see here. I’m extremely proud of the work they ’ ve done, and I trust you’ll learn a great deal from it too.
the story of orpheus and eurydice is one of love and loss the son of Apollo, a renowned lyre player, orpheus falls in love with a nymph named eurydice the two consummate their love with marriage, but their euphoria is soon overtaken by heartbreak and tragedy as eurydice is bitten by a serpent while on a walk by a river, sending her to her death in the underworld
orpheus appears in the foreground, the center of attention, a place where he found himself often when playing his music He is surrounded by animals infatuated with his artistry. Contrary to the title of the piece, he is not surrounded by forest beasts but rather more common and domestic animals, such as a horse, chicken, rabbits, birds, deer, squirrels, and possibly a cat. this may be an attempt to shift our perspective of what nature really is, toward a more bucolic and picturesque environment rather than one full of danger and ferocity.
Beck dresses orpheus as a modest farmer, his humble earthy-colored outfit reflects the environment suggesting calmness and togetherness, charming the viewer just as he charms the world with his music while enchanted by the music, the nymph eurydice can be seen calmly walking through the forest the sun illuminates not only her unconcealed body, but the entire scene around her. this natural light is contrasted with the ominous shadow at her feet, perhaps prefiguring the serpent she later steps on Just as eurydice did not know what was to come, the viewer is also kept in the dark.
By depicting orpheus in contemporary clothing and eurydice nude, Beck introduces more depth into the two lovers’ relationship; based on their mutual attraction to music and beauty she seems to show the contrasting, yet complementary characteristics between nature and civility.
Chase CorlissBeck’s love of finding one’s way around form in a painting is shown in this retelling of vergil’s tragic myth Orpheus and Eurydice eurydice’s two deaths are expressed in this scene through locations, objects, and positioning the artist sets the central scene on a staircase to represent orpheus’ decent to Hades and the dark plain of the underworld stopped midway, orpheus can see at the top of the stairs the lush, bright expanse of the world of the living and below him, at the foot of the staircase, lies his violin and accompanying bow, reminders that his immense musical talent was not enough to bring his wife back to life Beck exchanges a modern violin for the usual lyre (an ancient stringed instrument) However, the use of the instrument was purposeful: Beck was an accomplished violinist who studied music at oberlin before turning her studies to art and painting
the painting shown in the top right corner, while unclear, may depict
eurydice being carried on orpheus’ back over the river styx during their journey out of Hades Another point of uncertainty in this piece is the green object slumped against the staircase, perched open by eurydice’s left hand potentially a bag or satchel, the dark blue contents of the unidentified object spill on the ground
orpheus is positioned rigidly, feet planted firmly on the floor, his neck curled down toward her; he casts a somber gaze at his dead lover eurydice is positioned loosely, dead in orpheus’ arms her feet narrowly dangling at the midway point of the staircase, so close to leaving the underworld! Her position may be a representation of orpheus’ broken pact with Hades, a reminder that if he had not turned around, her feet would have carried her up the staircase, to salvation and back to him
Megan Soretteorpheus is a tragic hero with a heart-wrenching story of lost love He wed his love, eurydice, who died right after their wedding day Driven by grief, orpheus tried to retrieve her from the underworld, but failed because he broke a pact with Hades, god of the underworld Beck chose not to highlight these events, instead she focused on orpheus’ life after these tragedies
After the loss of his wife and his failed attempt to rescue her, orpheus found comfort in singing to and about nature He was the musically gifted son of Apollo, who himself had exquisite musical talent orpheus’ harmonious connection with nature was famous, for he was said to move the trees and stones with the power of his voice this is most likely the reason orpheus is a stark green color, to visually depict his connection to nature’s fertility and renewal
After his wife’s passing orpheus swore off the love of women in favor of idealized love found in the youth and beauty of boys Many women yearned for the gifted musician but were unable to obtain his affections no matter how hard they tried A few women, frenzied by their attraction to him and angered by his rejection, called for his murder perhaps the women mourners, surrounding orpheus in Beck’s work, are the women who ordered him torn him to pieces, who now feel remorse for killing him or they may be the woodland and river nymphs who mourned his death Beck depicts orpheus’ body intact, making his death less gruesome, and reinforcing his importance for the greek people, who commemorated him in their art and hymns
in this painting based on shakespeare’s play The Tempest, Caliban attempts to force himself upon Miranda, the daughter of his master, the wizard prospero Caliban is shown much more human-like than he is described in the play, save for a tail running down his leg, the only indication of his monstrous qualities However, his nudity and his lunging posture, like that of a pouncing animal, creates more visual ties to the beastly aspect of his character
By contrast, Miranda wears a white dress, symbolic of the innocence and purity she seeks to protect Her wide-eyed expression registers her surprise Her arms are raised in defense, an upended teacup rests on the ground nearby, likely dropped in reaction to Caliban’s attack this scene is an interesting subject for a painting, as it is one of the few scenes in the play that happens off stage, being merely stated as an incident that happened before the events of the play even begin this fact
is potentially hinted at by the gathering clouds in the background of the painting, showing that the titular “tempest” has not yet begun, but will soon
By depicting a scene that is overlooked by the play, Beck raises the issue of Miranda’s assault, bringing attention to Caliban’s violent aggression Caliban and Miranda both play minor roles in the play itself, Miranda serving as a love interest and Caliban serving as comic relief, roles Beck critiques Meanwhile, prospero, the main character of the play, is shoved into the position of a literal background character with her choice of scene and position of the characters, Beck intends for this painting to shift the focus to defining elements overlooked in the original source material: the aggressor and victim and male and female agency
Thomas StewartBeck engages with shakespeare’s The Tempest in Caliban and Miranda, depicting Caliban’s attempted sexual assault of Miranda the daughter of prospero, a wizard, exiled by his brother while the scene in this painting is relatively minor compared to the play’s complete narrative, the larger themes Beck explores the contrast between civilization and nature, purity, and unchecked desire are central to The Tempest
Miranda, the archetype of virtue and chastity, is pictured wearing a white dress and sandals Caliban, prospero’s servant, is depicted naked, representative of his uncultivated, barbaric nature Miranda’s modest dress in comparison to Caliban’s complete lack of coverage conveys the stark contrast between the two: civil chastity in opposition to savage coarseness
Caliban stands firmly behind Miranda, pulling at the ties of her dress He tries to literally undress her and metaphorically disrobe her of her pure
maiden virtue in his left hand, Caliban holds an ambiguous green object the domestic items in the background and Caliban’s flushed appearance suggest this could be a vessel containing alcohol that catalyzed Caliban’s action on the other hand, the green color of the item may represent Caliban as a symbol of uncivilized nature invading Miranda’s civilized space Namely, this item could be a fish in reference to Caliban being described as “a strange fish!” in shakespeare’s play
Beck’s placement of these two figures in a domestic setting may be another way to contrast Miranda’s civility with Caliban’s savagery: his nudity reveals his true nature and shows he does not belong Beck seems to be saying his violent intentions are out of place in a civilized world
Gabrielle Jarrettthrough vivid color and composition, Beck updates icarus’ fall with a modern-day perspective in the original myth, Daedalus and his son, icarus, had been imprisoned in a tower on the island of Crete by king Minos Daedalus, a brilliant inventor, devised a plan: he fashioned feathers and wax to create wings in order to fly safely, Daedalus warned icarus to travel between the extremes, warning him of the dangers of the sea and sun Despite Daedalus’ warning, icarus became lost in the joy of flight and flew too high, causing the wax to melt, leading to his fall and demise Beck has adjusted elements of the myth to emphasize the larger story Daedalus does not make an appearance, instead Beck focuses on icarus, who ignored his father ’s guidance and gave into his youthful spirit Beck also increases the number of people present for icarus’ fall, emphasizing
their role within the myth in the original version (ovid, Metamorphoses Book 8), only a few men working on land and sea see them; in Beck’s depiction, the beachgoers are too preoccupied to notice only one figure looks up and points as icarus plummets the moral of his fall, Beck seems to suggest, is that life will continue with or without us, and time stops for no one Despite the tragedy of icarus and its caution, generations of humanity will face the same trials
Jillian Jezior
the original texts of the story of icarus and Daedalus tell of a son and father escaping the island of Crete using the father ’s invention of wings made of wax and feathers Daedalus warns his son to not fly too high, as the sun may melt the wax successfully flying from the island, icarus becomes drawn to the heavens and leaves his father to fly higher icarus flies too close to the sun, the wax melts, shedding the feathers as he falls into the blue sea, yelling to his father until the water drowns his cries this story represents a cautionary tale about overambition and hubris while neglecting dangers and consequences
Beck’s embroidery contrasts the dreadfulness of icarus’ death against the beauty of his youth and the scenery the needlepoint shows icarus plummeting, the red feathers of his wings aflame, moments from certain death, His father Daedalus is safe on the ground watching in fear as his son nears the unforgiving sea the background of the piece shows their
ultimate goal, either setting their sights on reaching the faraway lands, or showing how far they escaped the island of Crete Daedalus, and his inventions, are what end up getting icarus killed, by breaking the order of nature and achieving the impossible; nature is hostile to divine overachievers the sky of the artwork mirrors the arc of the tale: Beck changes the sky from bright colorful rays to the setting sun, showing the descent of the sun and son icarus’ fall depicts the end of a short, bright life and the dark sorrow that follows Daedalus, mourning the death of his only child
icarus and his father Daedalus, an ancient greek inventor famous for creating the labyrinth that housed the Minotaur, escaped from the island of Crete using wings that Daedalus fashioned from wax and feathers. Before the two set off on their flight, Daedalus relays a warning to his son: Do not fly too high or the sun will scorch the feathers. icarus’ recklessness in ignoring this warning is a metaphor for the consequences of overambition and pride Beck, however, chooses to focus our attention on Daedalus by painting events that take place after icarus’ death. in this scene, most likely based on the story of icarus told by ovid in his Metamorphoses, where Daedalus has "caught sight of the feathers on the waves, and cursed his inventions,” icarus has already fallen into the sea and drowned Daedalus, having recovered his son’s body, struggles to hold him up, collapsing under his son’s weight and the unbearable grief of the loss of a child
Beck incorporates spectators who watch the drama unfold, a detail that appears first in ovid’s writing in ovid’s telling of the icarus myth, a shepherd, a fisherman, and a ploughman watch the flight. Beck places bystanders in this scene who witness icarus’ death serving as a cautionary tale for all of us
Liam GaffneyBeck depicts a moving passage from sophocles’ Antigone: Antigone’s dreaded walk to her confinement which amounts to a death sentence for breaking Creon's mandate that no one bury polynices, Antigone’s brother the leadup to this moment in the play is important: in the play’s opening, Antigone approaches ismene, her sister, with a burial plan and asks her to help ismene bemoans what happened to polynices’ body but refuses to break Creon’s law As women, she says, they cannot challenge a king Antigone then acts alone
Later, Antigone challenges Creon when she is brought before him, claiming that he is overstepping his authority as the city’s ruler and is undermining moral principles by barring polynices’ burial and deciding his fate the absence of funeral rites, she contends, would be a sacrilegious act against the gods themselves polynices’ spirit would be unable to find peace in the hereafter if the body was not buried ismene hoping to save her sister claims to have helped bury their brother, but Antigone rejects her defense; Creon, unbending, sends his niece to die in a cave, the
dramatic moment depicted here
in the painting, Antigone can be seen wearing a rose-pink dress with her head tilted towards the ground, experiencing intense grief, which will only worsen as she waits to pass away alone Beck depicts her crossing a river, possibly the river styx, which in greek mythology one needed to cross to enter the underworld, perhaps symbolizing the transition from life to death
there is another figure to the left, who already stands on the river ’s other side, hugging themselves and appearing distressed Could this be ismene? or is it polynices, who, having received a proper burial, reached the underworld and waits for Antigone to join him?
Beck’s Antigone cycle coincided with the loss of her husband, robert phelps, in 1989 and may have been a way for Beck to contend with the grief she was experiencing
Anna Robinsonthe fate of the rebellious heroine of sophocles’ play, Antigone, begins with her two brothers clashing swords on the battlefield of thebes, each fatally wounding the other eteocles is given funeral rites while the other, polynices, is left to rot in the dust Antigone rebels against the authority of her uncle, king Creon, by ensuring polynices’ body is given the funeral rites required for his entrance into Hades’ realm
Antigone stands unapologetically proud, glaring at her approaching sister ismene who refused to assist Antigone with the burial of their brother the ultimate family betrayal Antigone’s arm ensnared in Creon’s punishing grasp likely represents their recent argument, as described in sophocles’ play Antigone
ismene, the only figure in motion, is coming to the defense of Antigone this contrasts with the opening scene of sophocles’ play, which shows her refusing to assist her sister in burying polynices the obedient ismene chooses to do nothing, siding with her uncle out of duty Beck may have made her veil white as a sign of her virtue in this disruptive family
conflict Antigone is not wearing a veil which could represent her rebellious behavior ismene’s dynamic position in the painting reveals her emotional instability, placed in the corner of the painting with her back turned to the audience
the only figure who seems conflicted is the guard who turned Antigone in to save himself sophocles describes him stirred to pity by the plight of his prisoner the guard appears to be strong in stature but is weak-willed with his head bowed he seems to express regret in his betrayal of Antigone and his role in ensuring her death the guard’s decision sets in motion the tragic events that follow, and the onlookers may reflect the citizens’ concerns about the harsh unyielding rule of Creon
Beck presents the tragic consequences of disobedience tragedy, death, and different forms of grief are all present within her painting depicting the gruesome demise of a beloved couple
Antigone was the daughter of oedipus, the former king of thebes Her two brothers, eteocles and polynices, died in battle at each other ’s hands, fighting for the throne that Creon now occupies Because of polynices’ treasonous march on thebes, Creon commands that he be denied a proper burial Angered and confused, Antigone disobeys the orders of the king and is caught burying her brother As punishment, Creon despite being Antigone’s uncle sentences her to death by starvation once again, she defies him by committing suicide in despair, her lover Haemon, likewise takes his own life
Beck depicts tiresias, a blind seer, without a face, representing not only his blindness but perhaps also his lack of personality outside of his prophetic role Antigone’s intended and the son of Creon, Haemon, lies on top of his lover ’s deceased body the fabric she used to hang herself coils
around her body, draping down from her resting spot Blood runs from Haemon’s self-inflicted stab wounds staining the surface of the slab red, reinforcing the goriness of the scene in the background, Creon’s castle bears down on the scene, representing his overbearing power the beauty of nature contrasts with the violence of human nature ismene, Antigone’s sister, points to the sky in disbelief, expressing her anguish at the unexpected tragedy (and that she refused to help her sister bury polynices) Beck contrasts ismene’s grief with Creon, who hangs his head with shame because of his son's actions and the consequences of his unbending decree Beck depicts Creon in modern funeral attire, referencing the universality of grief the moribund eurydice wears red, mourning with Creon who is unaware his wife will soon die
Rithvick Ganash & Frankie CastagnoDepicted here is a scene missing from sophocles’ Antigone, one of his famous theban plays set after the suicides of the titular heroine and her fiancé Haemon, Beck depicts a funeral procession, where their bodies are escorted from the cave where they died and returned to the city of thebes this scene draws on another literary work, william Butler yeats’ poem From The “Antigone,” that focuses on the young woman’s descent “into the loveless dust ” yeats’ poem and Beck’s painting together make an apt coda to sophocles’ play for while it cannot undo the lovers’s deaths, the funeral cortege allows the thebans to grant Antigone and Haemon the proper burial previously denied to her and her family to the procession’s far right, Creon is depicted in modern clothes, removed from the rest of the funeral cortege He looks on in mourning and regret at the bodies of his son and future daughter-in-law, the sword that Haemon fell upon clutched in his hands Antigone’s cave dominates the background, appearing to subjugate the surrounding lush, bucolic
landscape thick, short brushstrokes give an almost frenetic, breathless air that simultaneously compliments the vivid brightness of the color scheme and belies the peaceful pastoralism of the theban countryside
Beck’s pastoral world is at odds with the somber nature of the painting’s subject At the center right of the foreground, clothed theban citizens carry a body shrouded in white, while to their left, unclothed enslaved people carry the other body, rendered in green the theban citizens are dressed in modern pants and button-down shirts, accompanied by a small black dog this places the story not in a farremoved time and place, but contemporary America Beck thus ensures that the tragedy and play’s themes of obedience, free will, and familial duty remain relevant
Ella Truesdale
Phaedra, 2002, oil on linen, 58” x 50”
in the last years of Beck’s life, she became enthralled by the story of phaedra as told in euripides’ Hippolytus the story expresses love, rivalry, regret, despair, loss, and unintended consequences set in motion by its female protagonist phaedra is cursed by Aphrodite, causing her to fall in love with her stepson, Hippolytus she reveals her secret infatuation to her nurse who begged to know why phaedra was so ill the nurse betrays phaedra’s trust and tells Hippolytus about the forbidden love phaedra hangs herself in both shame and heartbreak she leaves for her husband to find an inscribed tablet the ancient version of a suicide note containing the lie that Hippolytus raped her, keeping the real reason secret Hippolytus, exiled from Athens by his father, meets his end after his father curses him poseidon sends a monstrous bull that causes Hippolytus to be dragged to death by his horses He is found dead by the sea Artemis, having cared for the wild man, tells theseus the truth about his son and what really happened Aphrodite, in the end, is the only one to blame in this painting, a contemporary version of phaedra sits upon her
throne, staring out, above it all with the air of a noble woman removed, seemingly regretful of her love and the subsequent actions of her decisions Her despair is clear as her attendants bustle around her Hippolytus stands with his back to the beach where he eventually meets his death, while his father, theseus, points away as if telling him to leave Beck remarked that she felt similar to this in the last months of her life As she was in bed, sick with an inoperable brain tumor, her friends and art students were lively around her, never quite leaving her alone, though she may have felt, like phaedra, distant
the short strokes used in Beck’s technique are arranged to form the vague shapes of her subjects when observed from a distance, the brush strokes come together to show a particular scene, depicting its overall essence rather than the details Her technique well captures phaedra’s inability to see the devastating results of her actions
Liberty Laarman & Hannah Brigham
in a scene from euripides’ play Hippolytus, phaedra lies in bed, conflicted and distraught, cursed by Aphrodite she feels unfaithful toward her husband theseus because of the illicit love for her stepson Hippolytus Hippolytus, for his part, took a vow of chastity, devoting himself to Artemis, the virginal hunting goddess Aphrodite, feeling scorned and spiteful, cursed Hippolytus, but used innocent phaedra to punish him five women, probably nurses, dote tirelessly on phaedra as she lies sick, trying to help her overcome these feelings
Beck’s short and thick brush strokes add to the vagueness to the scene for example, we do not know if phaedra is dead or alive, because her face is not clearly painted phaedra’s arm is lifted to her forehead, which could indicate that she is still alive and suffering these mixed signals could be a manifestation of Beck’s fascination with ambiguous emotions, leaving it up to the viewer to interpret phaedra’s state of mind
Beck, interestingly, chooses to include cats in the scene; they are not represented in the original play the cats, shown as domestic pets, strangely lighten the heavy mood, and may minimize phaedra’s severe emotional dilemma insinuated as a choice between desire and abstinence Cats in art are traditionally signs of trouble and promiscuity, perhaps foreshadowing the harrowing events to come
Madeline Doyle
this painting draws heavily on euripides’ play Hippolytus, which focuses on the male characters, king theseus, phaedra’s husband, and his son Hippolytus in the play, phaedra is but a pawn, cursed by Aphrodite to love Hippolytus, her stepson, which leads to his destruction she eventually informs her nurse of this incestuous attraction; the nurse attempts to help by informing Hippolytus, but he is horrified and angered by this revelation rejected and embarrassed, phaedra hangs herself after writing a letter falsely accusing Hippolytus of attempted rape Her corpse is discovered first by the nurse, then by her husband theseus
this discovery, mildly stylized, is the subject of Beck’s work. she alters the scene by including Hippolytus and phaedra’s young son at the moment of her death and discovery. By doing so, Beck calls attention to the masculine-focused nature of Hippolytus and hints at Hippolytus’ demise the facial expressions, unusually clear for Beck’s work, emphasize the male-centric world of the play through their clear lack of emotion Hippolytus turns his back on his stepmother with an uncaring countenance And despite expressions of mourning, theseus, and the nurses all seem oddly distant, showing that perhaps phaedra’s wellbeing was never their actual concern even phaedra’s son, whose honor she claimed to die to protect, seems unconcerned as he pets one of Hippolytus’ hunting hounds
Despite this, the color and positioning ensure that phaedra is the focus of the painting she is literally centered, her body positioned between all other characters in the scene. the turquoise and white sheets of her deathbed and noose, along with her green dress, make up a bright combination of colors that naturally draws the eye away from the gloomier, dark outskirts of the frame. Not all is good, however, as the painting also reveals that this moment is her last; just out of her reach, we can see her final letter on the floor. this letter, falsely accusing Hippolytus of sexual assault, will cause events to spiral out of control as theseus curses Hippolytus with death in retribution.
Jim KertisAtalanta, knowing that she is expected to take a husband, agrees to marry if her future husband can beat her in a footrace to deter men from racing, suitors who lose to her in the race are punished with death Atalanta races and defeats all suitors until Hippomenes arrives knowing that he will not be able to outrun her, Hippomenes prays to the goddess of love, Aphrodite, for help Aphrodite takes pity on the man and gifts him with three golden apples, which he can use to distract Atalanta during the race
Atalanta, determined to win, is shown with her head bowed and muscles taut Hippomenes seems to linger behind her, perhaps relying on his cleverness to win the race instead of physical strength Beck depicts the scene just prior to Hippomenes’ win one apple has landed on the
path, the second aloft in mid-air, and the last golden apple, the key to victory, he holds in his hand, ready to launch Atalanta’s white flowing tunic may symbolize her last moments of freedom and innocence and serve as an ode to Artemis, the matron goddess of the hunt and virgins and Aphrodite’s rival who is frequently depicted wearing similar clothing the natural setting of the woods and the hunting dog that runs beside Atalanta honor Artemis’ domain Although Atalanta succumbs to Hippomene’s and Aphrodite’s scheme, in Beck’s drama she remains untamable and free
Molly GearhartAs told in ovid’s Metamorphoses, Actaeon, completing his hunt, chanced upon the divine grove of Diana where she and her nymphs are bathing when the nymphs lock eyes with Actaeon, they quickly run to Diana draping the goddess as well as their own bodies when Diana realizes that a mortal man has come into her haven with unjust cause she feels infuriated and embarrassed in her fit of fury, she splashes the waters of the grove onto Actaeon, turning him into a stag and transforming the predator into prey
escaping on nimble feet and realizing he is no longer human, Actaeon finds he cannot speak with strained options of accepting this new life or going home and risking an arrow to the heart, he turns back towards the woods with his hounds quickly approaching, he realizes that they no longer recognize him exhausted from the chase, Actaeon is overwhelmed
as his dogs sink their teeth into his body, unaware it is their master crying out (in the form of bellowing) for them to stop
Beck’s vibrant take on this myth, which was first established in the writings of Callimachus’ Hymn to Artemis (Hymn 5) and later popularized through ovid’s Metamorphoses, is given a modern twist Diana wears a white bathing suit to express her virginal status and modesty Beck takes a synoptic view of the myth: rather than depicting a single moment of the story she shows two: Diana bathing; and Actaeon’s transformation into a stag this gives the impression that Diana has meted out her punishment and returned to bathing with little care for Actaeon’s violent death
Henry HuotBeck creates the story of Apollo and Daphne with unfulfilled strokes of paint splattered across the canvas Beck’s interrupted brush marks leaves the viewer longing for completion and gives space for desire, allowing room for the viewer to process the ambiguity of the tale in the story, most famously told by ovid (Metamorphoses Book 1), Apollo comes across Cupid and taunts him about being unworthy of his bow Cupid, with his vengeful spirit, proves why he is also the master of the bow by crafting two arrows: one makes the person it pierces filled with love and the other makes the person it pierces repel love Cupid shoots the love-arrow at Apollo and the love-repellant arrow at the nymph, Daphne (her name means “Laurel-tree”) Apollo pursues Daphne, but Daphne does not reciprocate his love and runs away from him Daphne, pursued by Apollo calls out to her father, the river god peneus, to help her escape He answers her prayer and turns her into a laurel tree Apollo, saddened that he cannot have her, still loves her and vows to crown himself with her laurel leaves
the omission of Cupid in this painting shows Beck focusing on a different aspect of the story: a grown man preying on a little girl showing Apollo as an adult, Beck asserts he has more agency over his actions than that of a girl who is frightened by him and rejects his advances ovid mentions in the text that after transforming into a tree Daphne bends to Apollo in reciprocation of his feelings, but Beck depicts Daphne turned away from the god, suggesting she interprets the story differently presumably, Beck wanted to show the struggle women deal with when faced with unwanted affection from men Brendon Le
Orpheus
1 #482 Orpheus and Eurydice IV, 1970, oil on linen, 38” x 30”
2 #677 Mourning Orpheus, 1974-1975, oil on canvas, 25” x 28”
3 #581 Orpheus and Eurydice “Orpheus Among the Beasts” 1972, oil on linen, 42” x 50”
The Tempest: Caliban and Miranda
4 #797 Caliban and Miranda, 1977, oil on linen, 60” x 52”
5 #859 Caliban and Miranda, 1978, oil on linen, 40” x 48”
Daedalus and Icarus
6 #1185 Daedalus and Icarus, 1984, oil on linen, 50” x 64”
7 #1135 Daedalus and Icarus, 1983, oil on linen, 24” x 30”
8 #1446 Antigone Led to the Cave, 1992, oil on linen, 32” x 36”
9 #1528 From the Antigone, Funeral Cortege, 1994, oil on linen, 46”x 58”
10 #1537 Death of Antigone (Antigone Mourned), 1994, oil on canvas, 52” x 62”
Phaedra
11 #1677 Phaedra, 1999, oil on linen, 52” x 64”
12 #1777 Phaedra, 2002, oil on linen, 50” x 58”
13 #1760 Phaedra, 2002, oil on linen, 58” x 50”
Atalanta
15. #1236 Atalanta, 1986, oil on canvas, 48” x 62”
Diana and Actaeon
16 #1175 Diana and Actaeon, 1984, oil on linen, 52” x 60”
Apollo and Daphne
17. #1121 Apollo + Daphne, 1983, oil on linen, 48” x 43”
1 #1137 Untitled (Icarus), about 1983-1985, 20 5” x 16” framed
2 #1880, Antigone, about 1992, 19 25” x 15” framed
The exhibition and printing of this catalog were funded in part by the Friends of the Museum of Art. The project could not have been realized without the support of the College of Liberal Arts and the University administration.
An exhibition successfully integrated into the curriculum requires the effort, goodwill, and commitment of many lenders, faculty, students, and staff of the Museum of Art. I am indebted to the Rosemarie Beck Foundation for their support for this project, particularly Doria Hughes who graciously shared her intimate knowledge of Rosemarie Beck’s career and provided access to rich archival materials.
I am grateful to my colleagues at the University of New Hampshire, Professor R. Scott Smith and Senior Lecturer Paul Robertson for their enthusiasm and willingness to have students take up the challenge of researching and writing about contemporary retellings of ancient stories. The exhibition and catalog would not have been possible without the contributions of the students enrolled in CLAS 601: Power of Myth whose interpretations shed new light on these paintings. Special thanks to Professor Brian Chu and artist Shiao-Ping Wang for sharing their experiences as Beck’s former students.
I also wish to thank the staff of the Museum of Art who work daily to further the teaching mission of the Museum of Art, Molly Bolick, Education and Outreach Manager, Andrew Goldstein, Exhibitions and Collections Manager, Kathleen McKenna, Administrative Assistant, and museum fellows, Erin McKeen, Ember Nevins, and Nikki Tredwell.
Kristina L. Durocher DirectorBorn to Hungarian Jewish immigrants in New York, Rosemarie Beck graduated from Oberlin College with a bachelor's degree in art history in 1944 (her younger siblings - James Beck and Antoinette Beckwere also Oberlin grads. Jimmy went on to have a storied and controversial career as an Art Historian and professor at Columbia University, while Toni became a dancer and choreographer who studied with Martha Graham.). Beck later studied at Columbia University, the Art Students League in New York, the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University, in workshops with Kurt Seligmann, and in the atelier of Robert Motherwell. In 1945, she moved to Woodstock, N.Y., where she and her husband, writer Robert Phelps, struck up friendships with neighbors Philip Guston and Bradley Walker Tomlin, artists who influenced her early work.
In the postwar years, Beck was regarded as a member of the second generation of the New York School of abstract expressionists, and her work was often exhibited at their annual shows at the Stable and Peridot galleries, and the Whitney Museum. Beck considered herself an abstract expressionist, but by the late 1950s, she had switched to the figurative focus that
she would retain for the rest of her career. Beck described her transition this way: “ The ore in my abstract veins had thinned. I thought I would nourish my abstract painting by painting subjects. Then I couldn’t go back. I must have been a secret realist all along because I had never stopped drawing from life.”
Beck became “ one of the few painters of our time to treat grand themes in ambitious multi-figure compositions while satisfying a need both for abstract structure and for an execution that embodies energy without being gratuitous,” according to critic Martica Sawin.
Beck taught at Queens College of New York, Vassar College, Middlebury College, the Vermont Studio Center, Parsons School of Design, and the New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture, where she was on the faculty until shortly before she died.
Museum of Art
University of New Hampshire
Durham, New Hampshire
