GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s experiments with the subject of the modern swimmer demonstrate the artist’s sly sense of humor and were based on his summers at a coastal art colony in Maine. Here, both swimsuit and cigarette refer to newly relaxed codes of seaside behavior. The boldly un-self-conscious bather floating ashore on a minuscule clamshell recalls Italian Renaissance works such as Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus (1486, Uffizi). Solid forms, a flattened sense of space, and a dark palette mark this work as belonging to Kuniyoshi’s early career. He immigrated to the United States in 1906 and eventually moved to New York City, where he trained under Robert Henri and Kenneth Hayes Miller. In this scene, he follows his teachers’ example by presenting a modern, commonplace subject but retaining influences from previous centuries.
Excerpt from
Sue Canterbury, DMA label text, 2018
NOTES
Created in 1924
Checked Piction
Object File Reviewed
Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s experiments with the subject of the modern swimmer were based on his summers at the Ogunquit, Maine,
art colony founded by the Brooklyn gallerist Hamilton Easter Field. Kuniyoshi was slyly humorous in his depiction of amply
proportioned young women in brief swimsuits. Here, both swimsuit and cigarette refer to newly relaxed codes of seaside
behavior. The boldly unself-conscious bather floating ashore on a minuscule clamshell recalls Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus
(Uffizi Gallery, Florence) from the Italian Renaissance. Solid forms and a flattened sense of space, as well as the dark colors, mark this work as belonging to Kuniyoshi’s first (and some consider his best) period.
Kuniyoshi immigrated to the United States in 1906, where he studied with Robert Henri. He exhibited with the Society of
Independent Artists in 1917 and taught for twenty years at the Art Students League.
Sue Canterbury, Associate Curator of American Art, Fall 2012
Youth and Beauty First Glances--TAZ:
Bather with Cigarette presents a curvaceous female swimmer at the seashore. A small clamshell, a symbol of female sexuality, rests behind her. This painting is one of Yasuo Kuniyoshi's numerous experiments in the subject of modern swimmers, many of which he executed during summers spent at a Maine art colony. This figure boldly flaunts her swimsuit and cigarette, expressing the newly relaxed behavioral codes associated with trips to the seaside. The simplified, stylized figure and flattened sense of space in Bather with Cigarette are characteristic of Kuniyoshi's early work.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Kuniyoshi, Yasuo (American, 1889-1953)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location and place of origin: Ogunquit (Maine/United States): TGN: 7014264
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1953: Yasuo Kuniyoshi (1889-1953)
As of 1953: his wife, Sara Kuniyoshi, by inheritance
n.d.: The Downtown Gallery, New York
n.d.: private collection, New York.
From 1988: Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association Purchase Fund, Deaccession Funds/City of Dallas (by exchange) in honor of Dr. Steven A. Nash [James Maroney Inc., New York] [1]
[1] The Dallas Arts Association is the predecessor to the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts. The name was abandoned in 1970. Works from this collection were transferred to the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts. The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery~Learn more about Yasuo Kuniyoshi at the SAAM's online exhibition The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi.
- The Oregon Historical Society~View an image of the "Jantzen Red Diving Girl," a popular corporate logo from the 1920s with a similar bathing suit to Bather with Cigarette.
- Uffizi Gallery Museum~Explore the connections between Kuniyoshi's Bather with Cigarette and Sandro Botticelli's Birth of Venus.
- National Gallery of Art~Read a biography of Yasuo Kuniyoshi from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.
- NPR~This article from NPR expands on Kuniyoshi's biography and his experiences as a Japanese-American living in the United States during the second World War.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
- The swimsuit worn by the figure in this painting closely resembles the swimsuit worn by the "Jantzen Red Diving Girl," a popular corporate logo from the 1920s.
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1988.22
Category
rules_operator
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General Description
Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s experiments with the subject of the modern swimmer demonstrate the artist’s sly sense of humor and were based on his summers at a coastal art colony in Maine. Here, both swimsuit and cigarette refer to newly relaxed codes of seaside behavior. The boldly un-self-conscious bather floating ashore on a minuscule clamshell recalls Italian Renaissance works such as Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus (1486, Uffizi). Solid forms, a flattened sense of space, and a dark palette mark this work as belonging to Kuniyoshi’s early career. He immigrated to the United States in 1906 and eventually moved to New York City, where he trained under Robert Henri and Kenneth Hayes Miller. In this scene, he follows his teachers’ example by presenting a modern, commonplace subject but retaining influences from previous centuries.
Excerpt from
Sue Canterbury, DMA label text, 2018
Fun Facts
- The swimsuit worn by the figure in this painting closely resembles the swimsuit worn by the "Jantzen Red Diving Girl," a popular corporate logo from the 1920s.
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery~Learn more about Yasuo Kuniyoshi at the SAAM's online exhibition The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi.
- The Oregon Historical Society~View an image of the "Jantzen Red Diving Girl," a popular corporate logo from the 1920s with a similar bathing suit to Bather with Cigarette.
- Uffizi Gallery Museum~Explore the connections between Kuniyoshi's Bather with Cigarette and Sandro Botticelli's Birth of Venus.
- National Gallery of Art~Read a biography of Yasuo Kuniyoshi from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.
- NPR~This article from NPR expands on Kuniyoshi's biography and his experiences as a Japanese-American living in the United States during the second World War.
Notes
Created in 1924
Checked Piction
Object File Reviewed
Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s experiments with the subject of the modern swimmer were based on his summers at the Ogunquit, Maine,
art colony founded by the Brooklyn gallerist Hamilton Easter Field. Kuniyoshi was slyly humorous in his depiction of amply
proportioned young women in brief swimsuits. Here, both swimsuit and cigarette refer to newly relaxed codes of seaside
behavior. The boldly unself-conscious bather floating ashore on a minuscule clamshell recalls Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus
(Uffizi Gallery, Florence) from the Italian Renaissance. Solid forms and a flattened sense of space, as well as the dark colors, mark this work as belonging to Kuniyoshi’s first (and some consider his best) period.
Kuniyoshi immigrated to the United States in 1906, where he studied with Robert Henri. He exhibited with the Society of
Independent Artists in 1917 and taught for twenty years at the Art Students League.
Sue Canterbury, Associate Curator of American Art, Fall 2012
Youth and Beauty First Glances--TAZ:
Bather with Cigarette presents a curvaceous female swimmer at the seashore. A small clamshell, a symbol of female sexuality, rests behind her. This painting is one of Yasuo Kuniyoshi's numerous experiments in the subject of modern swimmers, many of which he executed during summers spent at a Maine art colony. This figure boldly flaunts her swimsuit and cigarette, expressing the newly relaxed behavioral codes associated with trips to the seaside. The simplified, stylized figure and flattened sense of space in Bather with Cigarette are characteristic of Kuniyoshi's early work.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Kuniyoshi, Yasuo (American, 1889-1953)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location and place of origin: Ogunquit (Maine/United States): TGN: 7014264
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1953: Yasuo Kuniyoshi (1889-1953)
As of 1953: his wife, Sara Kuniyoshi, by inheritance
n.d.: The Downtown Gallery, New York
n.d.: private collection, New York.
From 1988: Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association Purchase Fund, Deaccession Funds/City of Dallas (by exchange) in honor of Dr. Steven A. Nash [James Maroney Inc., New York] [1]
[1] The Dallas Arts Association is the predecessor to the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts. The name was abandoned in 1970. Works from this collection were transferred to the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts. The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
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