The Bather with Outstretched Arms 1980 - 1981

Graham Nickson’s “Bather with Outstretched Arms” is made of many panels. The surface is covered in this dreamy, soft blue acrylic paint. I wonder about the gesture of painting each panel. I imagine Nickson starting with one panel, and the color slowly creeping over the surface of each until they all become this one complete scene. The paint isn’t too thick, but you can see the direction of each brushstroke, like the water rippling in the wind. What happens when you stretch your arms out like that? Can you feel the breeze? It’s like you’re balancing on the edge of something, and then you’re flying… Painters are always looking at other painters. I can see an influence from Milton Avery here, who also painted these beach scenes. Everyone is always building on something, in a constant conversation. And the best paintings always leave space for you, the viewer, to bring something of yourself to the experience, like adding your own brushstroke to the story.