The Tempest
Max Beckmann
(German, 1884–1950)
1930; 1946-49
Medium/TechniqueOil on paperboard mounted on plywood
Dimensions179.4 x 66 cm (70 5/8 x 26 in.)
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Max Beckmann
Accession number58.24
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Throughout his career Beckmann was attracted to mysterious allegories and complicated symbolism, and his works are often difficult to decode. With its swirl of ambiguous, nightmarish figures, this painting's exact subject remains something of a mystery. The ambiguity is reinforced by the fact that Beckmann thought and rethought the work: he began the painting in 1947, but reworked it heavily two years later, changing its name from Jupiter to The Tempest.
InscriptionsLower right: BecKmanProvenance1950, by inheritance from the artist to his widow, Mathilde von Kaulbach Beckmann (b. 1904 - d. 1986), Frankfurt, Germany and St. Louis; 1958, gift of Mrs. Max Beckmann to the MFA. (Accession Date: January 9, 1958)Copyright
Charles Émile Jacque
Peter De Wint
William Etty
