The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Coney Island Bather

Coney Island Bather

c. 1939–41
(American, 1901–1983)
Image: 49.8 x 39.8 cm (19 5/8 x 15 11/16 in.); Paper: 50.6 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.); Matted: 66 x 55.9 cm (26 x 22 in.)
© Lisette Model Foundation, courtesy PaceWildensteinMacGill, New York
Location: not on view

Description

This bold photograph of a woman in the surf at Coney Island is one of her best-known images taken by Model during her long career. Hands on knees, smiling, and looking away from the camera, the isolated figure, simply positioned and occupying most of the space in this large print, makes a powerful, arresting image. Model was adept at capturing a revealing moment when an ordinary person was doing a common activity.
  • Turner, Evan H. "The Year in Review for 1987." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 75, no. 2 (1988): 30-71. p. 67, no. 74 25160017
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Tom E Hinson. Catalogue of Photography. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1996. Reproduced: P. 246
  • A New York Minute: Street Photography, 1920-1950. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 11-November 7, 2021).
    From Riches to Rags: American Photography in the Depression. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 13-December 31, 2017).
    Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 24-September 16, 2007).
    Legacy of Light: Master Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 24, 1996-February 2, 1997).
    Ottawa, National Gallery of Canada, Oct. 5, 1990 - Jan. 6, 1991: "Lisette Model," exhibition catalogue no. 8, p. 24, repr. p. 25. (Exhibition also held at the International Center of Photography, Feb. 2 - March 23, 1991, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, April 18 - June 9, 1991, and at 3 other locations through spring 1992.)
    CMA, July 10 - August 19, 1990: "The Camera," Classroom Level, no exhibition catalogue.
    The Year in Review for 1987. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 24-April 17, 1988).
  • {{cite web|title=Coney Island Bather|url=false|author=Lisette Model|year=c. 1939–41|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1987.219