Jess
American (Long Beach, California, 1923 - 2004, San Francisco, California)Narkissos
Narkissos is the most significant work in the oeuvre of Jess, the collagist and painter who lived and worked in San Francisco for over 50 years. An ambitious engagement with the myth of Narcissus (the title takes the Greek spelling, reflecting the origins of the myth), this piece was conceived by Jess in 1959 as a large-scale, highly detailed painting in homage to the symbolist painter Gustave Moreau. Recognizing the difficult task that lay ahead of him, he eventually decided to focus on a monumental drawing of the work, composed of hand-drawn fragments and "paste-ups," the artist's term for collage.
The classical myth's basic coordinates are in place in the picture: Narcissus is entranced by his own reflection as Eros watches nearby, and Echo, whose unrequited love for the young Narcissus led to her death, dives in anguish in the upper-right corner. But the image, made entirely from found sources, contains a profusion of other references to the myth and its many retellings, including commentaries, rhymes, and puns. Jess scrupulously noted the source of each image in an accompanying logbook, which also documents every mention of the Narcissus myth the artist encountered during more than three decades of research on the subject, from the standard telling provided by Book III of Ovid's Metamorphoses to a publicity shot of a young, grinning Ronald Reagan posing in a life preserver upon which the word "Narcissus" has been stenciled.
Keywords
collage, drawings, reproductions, found materials, youth, males, myths, mythology, Narcissus
Please note that artwork locations are subject to change, and not all works are on view at all times. If you are planning a visit to SFMOMA to see a specific work of art, we suggest that you contact us in advance at collections@sfmoma.org to confirm that it will be on view.
Only a portion of SFMOMA's collection is currently online, and the information presented here is subject to revision. Please contact us at collections@sfmoma.org to verify artwork details.
This resource is for educational use and its contents may not be reproduced without permission. Please review our Terms of Use for more information.
