Pasiphaë 1945

Andre Masson made this chalk and pastel drawing, Pasiphaë, in the mid-twentieth century. The subject is taken from Greek myth. Pasiphaë, wife of King Minos, was cursed by Poseidon to lust after a bull, and from this union came the Minotaur. Masson was a figure in the Surrealist movement, which flourished in Europe between the wars. One of its central ideas was that art should bypass the conscious mind, tapping into the unconscious. Masson sought to do this through automatism – spontaneous drawing without planning. But, as we can see, the figure of the Minotaur, half man, half beast, is clearly visible. It represents the violent and chaotic side of human nature, unrestrained by reason. The story is a critique of monarchy and civilization. In the wake of two world wars, many artists looked to mythology to explore the dark undercurrents of Western culture. To understand this work better, look into the art and literature of the period and the ideas of leading intellectuals such as Carl Jung. The meaning of art depends on its social and cultural context.