Description
Born in Cincinnati, Potthast studied in Munich and Paris before returning to the United States, where he began spending summers along the coast of New England. There he studied the carefree seaside activities of bathers and picnickers. Although he never married, he was particularly fond of painting young mothers and their children.
Provenance
Charles and Nell Wheeler; Virginia Rose Glidden and Family
Accession Number
2001.41.a
Medium
oil on panel
Dimensions
Overall: 31.8 x 40.7 cm (12 1/2 x 16 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of Virginia Rose Glidden and family and Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund
Tags
Painting Early Modern (1901–1950) Oil Painting Panel Painting American
Background & Context
Background Story
In the Surf from c. 1910 is a quintessential Potthast beach scene, depicting bathers enjoying the surf at one of New York's popular beaches. Potthast's treatment is characteristically bright and vigorous: the figures are rendered in rapid, confident brushstrokes that capture the joy and energy of a day at the beach without the plein air atmosphere of French Impressionism. Potthast's beach scenes are American Impressionism at its most cheerful and democratic—celebrating the common pleasure of a day at the shore rather than the refined sensibility of the French café-concert.
Cultural Impact
Potthast's beach scenes are American Impressionism at its most democratic, celebrating the common pleasure of a day at the shore rather than the refined leisure of French Impressionist subjects. The bathers in the surf are working-class and middle-class New Yorkers enjoying a rare moment of leisure, and Potthast's bright palette and vigorous brushwork give their enjoyment the same pictorial dignity that French Impressionism reserved for the bourgeoisie at the café.
Why It Matters
In the Surf is Potthast's American Impressionism at its most cheerful and democratic: bathers in the surf rendered with bright colors and vigorous brushwork, celebrating the common pleasure of a day at the beach. The painting is American Impressionism without the French pretension—a democratic art for democratic leisure.
