Sister Wendy Beckett, the Nun Who Made Art History Into Must-Watch TV, Has Died
Sister Wendy Beckett was a television anachronism. Over 60 years old, in a nun's habit and overlarge glasses, speaking with slight speech impediment-and standing in front of art history's great works, describing sexually explicit scenes with an earnest glee.
She seemed to float through the galleries, her black robes fluttering, before stopping in front of a painting to critique it in her signature style. As goes one of her most oft-quoted lines, of a work by Stanley Spencer, "I love all those glistening strands of his hair, and her pubic hair is so soft and fluffy."
That tension endeared her to millions of viewers, earning her high ratings for her BBC documentaries. When she died on Wednesday at the age of 88 (as confirmed by the Carmelite Monastery in Quidenham, England, where she had lived for decades), she had made a handful of television series and written around 25 books on art and religion.
Sister Wendy lived as a cloistered nun for decades before publishing her first book, Contemporary Women Artists, was published in 1988. Three years later, she caught the eye of a BBC producer, who persuaded her to host a documentary about the U.K.'s National Gallery. Her career took off from there.
Despite her success, Sister Wendy never strayed from her life of religious devotion. From 1970-when she was diagnosed with epilepsy and gave up teaching for a life of solitude-to the day she died, she lived in a humble trailer on the grounds of the Carmelite Monastery. She gave all of her money to the monastery, and attended mass daily.
After all, art and religion were inextricable for Sister Wendy. "If you don't know about God," she once said, "art is the only thing that can set you free."
('You Might Also Like',)
Solve the daily Crossword
