Abstraction and the American Scene

Atlantic City Beach, 1931
Reginald Marsh (1898-1954)
Egg tempera on canvas on Masonite™,
36 x 60 inches
Bequest of Mrs. Reginald Marsh, 1979
DAM 1979-48

A student of Robert Henri and John Sloan, Reginald Marsh was drawn to the vitality of common life. A favorite motif was the public beach, particularly the beaches at Coney Island and Atlantic City where New Yorkers went to escape the summer heat. This crowded scene with its intertwined figures and leering glances shows the beach to provide little respite from summer in the city.