Stephanie Rose (painter)

Portrait of Stephanie Rose in her studio by Veronica Cross (2013)

Stephanie Rose (April 23, 1943, in New York City – March 23, 2023, in Basel, Switzerland[1]), was an American painter known for dramatic non-narrative abstract paintings composed of diverse passages including representational imagery and for portraiture in which the highly recognizable subjects appear in settings related to her work in abstraction; both, she has said, involve a "combination of historical and existential perspectives".[2]

Rose’s reputation was established as an abstract painter; her work in portraiture began late in her career in 1996.[3] Exhibitions of her work typically include both modes of painting of which she has remarked, "Overall, the pivotal aspect for communicating meaning in my work is the investment of a theatrical sense of psychological presence in the paintings."[2]

James K. Kettlewell, (curator emeritus, The Hyde Collection, Glens Falls, NY; professor emeritus of the history of art, Skidmore College) said of her in 2012:

"The extraordinary art of Stephanie Rose occupies a critical place in Modern/Postmodern art history. Utterly original, her style effects a perfect synthesis between these two opposing philosophies of art….. Content is intimately bound to form. These paintings, like the plays of Shakespeare, can never be exhausted – they are constantly renewed as different aspects reveal themselves to the experienced observer. Perhaps the most "Old Master" aspect of Stephanie Rose’s work is the quite delectable surface treatment. Her rich brushwork can be related to the paintings of Titian or of Rembrandt, or to the brushed metal of David Smith’s late sculptures in stainless steel. In her paintings Stephanie Rose achieves Cezanne’s proclaimed ambition; she has created a great art that is ‘like the art of the museums.’ In any museum it could hold its own against any art of the past."[4]

  1. ^ "STEPHANIE ROSE Obituary (2024) - New York, NY - New York Times". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  2. ^ a b Rose, Stephanie (2012). The Eternal Return, Stephanie Rose, Exhibition Catalogue. Albany Institute of History & Art. p. 35.
  3. ^ McCarthy, Gerard (October 1999). "Stephanie Rose at the Dactyl Foundation". Art in America (10): 160.
  4. ^ Kettlewell, James K. (2012). The Portraits of Stephanie Rose, The Eternal Return, Exhibition Catalogue. Albany Institute of History & Art. p. 35.