Coney Island Beach
New Yorkers’ pursuit of pleasure, whether it be at burlesque theaters, dance halls, the opera, or the beach, preoccupied Marsh throughout his career. He was particularly drawn to Coney Island, producing numerous images of the Brooklyn beach and adjacent amusement park. In the mid-1920s, he began creating elaborate compositions made up of figures whose bodies are rendered from various perspectives—a direct result of encountering Renaissance and Baroque art during a trip to Europe. In discussing the rowdy beachgoers at Coney Island, Marsh remarked that he was transfixed by the "crowds of people in all directions, in all positions, without clothing, moving—like the great compositions of Michelangelo and Rubens. I failed to find anything like it in Europe."
Artwork Details
- Title: Coney Island Beach
- Artist: Reginald Marsh (American (born France), Paris 1898–1954 Dorset, Vermont)
- Date: 1935
- Medium: Etching and engraving
- Dimensions: plate: 9 x 11 15/16 in. (22.9 x 30.4 cm)
sheet: 10 5/8 x 14 7/16 in. (27 x 36.7 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Gift of The Honorable William Benton, 1959
- Object Number: 59.609.16
- Rights and Reproduction: © 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.