The Gang, 2009

A joyful beach scene, a lazy afternoon with friends, a dog, umbrellas, towels on the sand, a smile on everyone's face, blue sky, strong light...all of these components make for a magnificent, joyful composition. This work is a particularly intimate one, as it features Fischl's wife, April Gornik (whose work is also featured in the America: Now and Here portfolio). This photograph belongs in a series of "beach" collages that Fischl made after visiting St. Tropez in the 1980s, where he had his first contact with nudity in a public place. "The experience of being there was so overwhelming that I couldn't believe what I was looking at. I had no idea how I felt about it."

This photograph transmits a strong sense of friendship and familiarity, of people comfortable with each other and with their bodies. Eric Fischl has the unique talent of transmitting a joie de vivre in his collages, which makes him one of the most acclaimed artists of his generation.

Eric Fischl is an internationally acclaimed American painter and sculptor. He first gained the art world's attention in the late 1970s for his depictions of the dark side of suburban life. Fischl's paintings from that time dealt with issues of early sexuality and voyeurism against the backdrop of middle-class American life. To this day, Fischl's work is consistent in its exploration of human relationships. His extraordinary achievements throughout his career have made him one of the most influential figurative painters of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Fischl's paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints have been the subject of numerous solo and major group exhibitions and his work is represented in many museums, as well as prestigious private and corporate collections, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Museum of Modem Art in New York City, The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, St. Louis Art Museum, Louisiana Museum of Art in Denmark, Musée Beaubourg in Paris, The Paine Weber Collection, and many others. Fischl has collaborated with other artists and authors, including E.L. Doctorow, Allen Ginsberg, Jamaica Kincaid, Jerry Saltz and Frederic Tuten.

Eric Fischl is also the founder, President and lead curator for America: Now and Here. This multi-disciplinary exhibition of 150 of some of America's most celebrated visual artists, musicians, poets, playwrights, and filmmakers is designed to spark a national conversation about American identity through the arts. The project launched on May 5th, 2011 in Kansas City before traveling to Detroit and Chicago.

Fischl is a Fellow at both the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Science. He lives and works in Sag Harbor, NY with his wife, the painter April Gornik.

Courtesy of the Artist

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