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Spring in Central Park (recto); Three Figures (verso)

William Zorach American, born Lithuania
1914 (recto); ca. 1920 (verso)
Not on view
Vibrant and utopian, Zorach's Spring in Central Park presents a nude couple embracing tenderly in an inviting and imaginatively conceived natural environment. Referring to Christian iconography of Adam and Even in the Garden of Eden before original sin, the painting interprets New York's popular outdoor destination as a contemporary paradise, in which life and love are celebrated. Zorach likely intended the figures to be surrogates of himself and his wife, Marguerite, also an accomplished artist. The composition's bold, non-naturalistic palette and direct, naive-looking painting technique reflect the influence of the so-called Fauvist works of Henri Matisse and Andre Derain, which Zorach encountered while studying in Paris.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Spring in Central Park (recto); Three Figures (verso)
  • Artist: William Zorach (American (born Lithuania), Jurbarkas (Eurburg) 1889–1966 Bath, Maine)
  • Artist: Marguerite Zorach (American, Santa Rosa, California 1887–1968 New York)
  • Date: 1914 (recto); ca. 1920 (verso)
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 46 × 36 in. (116.8 × 91.4 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Gift of Peter Zorach, 1979
  • Object Number: 1979.223a, b
  • Rights and Reproduction: © Estate of William Zorach
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

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Mother and Child, William Zorach American, born Lithuania, Oil on canvas
Mother and Child
William Zorach
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Reclining Figure, William Zorach American, born Lithuania, Bronze
Reclining Figure
William Zorach
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Marianne Moore, William Zorach American, born Lithuania, Graphite on paper
Marianne Moore
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Ruth Wittenberg, William Zorach American, born Lithuania, Graphite with stumping on tracing paper
Ruth Wittenberg
William Zorach
1933
Kneeling Woman, William Zorach American, born Lithuania, Bronze
Kneeling Woman
William Zorach
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