The evocative ‘Sisyphus’, was created at the beginning of David Rose’s illustrious career. He and his wife had saved enough funds to travel to Spain, where he produced a series of works exploring the famed Ancient Greek myth.

While the particulars of Sisyphus’s story have changed across time, its thrust remains constant. As punishment, Zeus condemns Sisyphus to forever roll a boulder up a hill in the depths of Hades. This punishment is a metaphor for the human condition — a hapless struggle against the inevitable.

There is a timeless intensity to Rose’s vision. Under Rose's hand, Sisyphus’s plight is an almost biblical tragedy. His body, red and sinewy, is like rock, pressed against the boulder.

A companion work is in the public collection of the Mosman Art Gallery when it was acquired by the gallery in 1963 through their acquisitive Mosman Art Prize. 

Rose is a highly accomplished artist. Best known for his visions of nature and still-lives, he is represented in numerous public collections including at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and internationally at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

David ROSE (1936 - )
'Sisyphus' 1963
Mixed media on paper
Image Size: 54 x 36 cm
Dimensions: 76 x 57 x 4 cm
Signed: David Rose upper right and dated 1963
Comes with Letter of Provenance

Condition: excellent
© The Artist or Assignee