Gertrude Stein famously said “A rose is a rose is a rose,” but with all due respect, she never saw this rose. True, the painting has been called many different names — Deathrose, White Rose, and ultimately, The Rose — and yet, it is anything but another rose. Layered with nearly two thousand pounds of paint, The Rose is neatly tucked into a corner of the new exhibition at SFMOMA, Jay DeFeo: A Retrospective, but it is the fulcrum on which all other drawings, photographs, collages, small sculptures, and jewelry designs depend on.
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