Marion Beckett

Marius de Zayas

ca. 1915 · Charcoal and graphite on paper · Modern and Contemporary Art

With her good friends from the 291 gallery, Katharine Rhoades and Agnes Meyer, Marion Beckett (1886–1949) often visited the photographer Edward Steichen and his family at their home in France. In this idyllic setting, Beckett focused on her own painting (which was shown at 291 in 1915), while also serving as an inspiration for Steichen. Described by Agnes Meyer as one of "the most beautiful young women that ever walked this earth," Beckett was more gentle and reserved than the other "Three Graces" (Rhoades and Meyer). Here, in one of his most geometric and starkly simple compositions, de Zayas gives her an expression of wide-eyed innocence, defining only her catlike eyes and a few wisps of hair. Undermining her serenity, however, are the massive blocks of black charcoal, peaked and threatening on all sides, that perhaps allude to rising tensions within the Steichen household over his alleged infidelities.

Artist

Marius de Zayas

Date

ca. 1915

Medium

Charcoal and graphite on paper

Department

Modern and Contemporary Art

Credit line

Alfred Stieglitz Collection, 1949