At first glance, the amount of detail in the water can make you believe that the paintings are actual photographs of people enjoying the water. Marcos Beccari wonderfully captures the movement of waves of water and how the water refracts the image of submerged people, making you believe for a few moments that it’s a photograph and not a painting. His paintings show the tranquility and peace people can have while bathing, as My Modern Met details:
These radiant works typically feature one or more figures immersing themselves in picturesque coves or lagoons. Although swimmers are often the focus of Beccari's paintings, their faces are rarely in full view. Instead, the artist prefers to keep them anonymous, frequently distorting the features with moving water or by having their backs facing the viewer. This gives Beccari's works a sense of romantic nostalgia and allows the audience the opportunity to complete the narrative created in the painting.
Before each new piece, Beccari gathers a variety of photo references to help him capture the light and find the right color palette. “The pictures which most often inspire me are from movies, which usually give me ideas for a drawing and motivate the painting process,” he explains. “And lately I’ve focused on the body submerged in water, simply because it is a beautiful situation.”
Image via My Modern Met