The Bathers
Artist
Marisol
(Venezuelan, French, American, 1930 - 2016) Date1961-1962
MediumPainted wood panel, graphite, plaster cast, and sculpted wood
Dimensions84 in. × 70 1/4 in. × 63 in. (213.4 × 178.4 × 160 cm)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LinePromised Gift to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas
Label TextEnjoying a day at the beach has remained a popular pasttime, but Marisol’s sculpture shows how much had changed by the 1960s. One of the carefree sunbathers wears a bikini (invented in 1946) while the others appear to be nude. The radical forms of the figures—emerging from the wall and constructed from blocky wood and plaster casts with features drawn directly on the surface—reveal Marisol’s pursuit of new ways to combine painting and sculpture to express modern leisure.
