ABSTRACT
This essay examines Julian Beck’s pictorial production from the mid-1940s to the late 1950s, reconsidering the often-repeated narrative that he abandoned painting in order to devote himself entirely to the “more social art of the theatre.” Instead, the study argues that Beck’s turn toward theatre was not a rupture but the implicit outcome of a creative process already oriented toward expanding the boundaries of artistic practice. Through an analysis of Beck’s early involvement in the vibrant New York art scene, his encounters with European avant-garde artists, and his proximity to Abstract Expressionism, the essay reconstructs Beck’s evolution from non-objective abstraction toward increasingly image-laden, materially complex compositions. In the 1950s, Beck’s work reveals a growing insistence on art as a socially charged, transformative act, culminating in mixed-media experiments that integrate elements of reportage and direct references to contemporary reality. His final decision in 1958 to cease painting is thus interpreted not as a renunciation but as a transposition of pictorial ambitions into a broader Gesamtkunstwerk, where life, theatre, and political engagement merge into a unified artistic vision aimed at “painting the world.”
BIOGRAFIA
Stefania Zuliani insegna Teoria della critica d’arte e Teoria del museo e delle esposizioni in età contemporanea all’Università di Salerno. Ha pubblicato numerosi saggi e monografie tra cui, più di recente, Senza cornice. Spazi e tempi dell’istallazione (Roma 2015) e Torna diverso. Una galleria di musei (Pistoia 2022). Ha curato volumi e cataloghi tra cui Atelier d’artista. Gli spazi di creazione dell’arte dall’età moderna al presente (Milano 2014), Angelo Trimarco Italia 1960-2020. Teoria e critica d’arte (Napoli 2022) e con Antonello Tolve Occasioni del tempo. La collezione Filiberto e Bianca Menna (Milano 2023). Giornalista pubblicista e critico d’arte, è curatrice di mostre per istituzioni pubbliche e università.
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