As I swelter through the dog days of summer along with my fellow Washingtonians, my overheated mind called forth a favorite print from our Fine Prints collection. The grace and simplicity of this lithograph are compelling enough, but the promise of a refreshing splashdown and a cool breeze on the way down is what caught my eye and imagination:
Swan Dive was created by artist Mabel W. Jack in 1939 as part of her work with the Federal Art Project in New York. Searching through the Prints and Photographs Online Catalog for more divers, I found the unrelated photograph (right) by Theodor Horydczak. The unnamed subjects in both images wear a common bathing suit style and cap of the time, and are captured at nearly the same moment in a swan dive. Both make me crave a refreshing dip in the pool!
Learn More:
- Plunge into a pool of more images related to the subject of diving in the Prints and Photographs Online Catalog.
- Revisit a previous Picture This blog post about Beating the Summer Heat, with other ideas on how to cool down.
- Learn more about the Federal Art Project in an online guide: New Deal Programs: Selected Library of Congress Resources.