George Baldessin is one of Australia's preeminent artists. During his lifetime, he was considered on par with Brett Whiteley, with both artists eschewing the dominant mode of abstraction in favour of lyrical, figurative imagery.

Baldessin's work explored existentialism, sexuality, boundaries, and split personality. Figures recur in Baldessin's work, twisting into contorted shapes, their faces often concealed or veiled in shadow. A sense of mystery percolates his practice, underscoring The Bather I - a stylised portrait of a lone bather, her water-spiked obscuring most of her face. The figure folds inward upon herself, a tangle of limbs and sly, watchful eyes.

Baldessin has been honoured with retrospective exhibitions at Heide Museum, the Art Gallery of NSW, and alongside Brett Whiteley at the National Gallery of Victoria. He is represented in all regional and many state collections, as well as New York's Museum of Modern Art. Perhaps, however, Baldessin is best known for his sumptuous brass pears, which stand guard at the NGA. Indeed, The Bather I is a museum-quality work with an impression represented at the National Gallery of Australia. It was also exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria in 2018 for Baldessin/Whiteley: Parallel Visions, curated by Sasha Grishin.

Baldessin sought to express human sensibility through the vulnerability of his figures, while preserving dignity. Distortion and drama were his essential tools, capturing tension and dynamism within his print works. Encompassing this technical prowess, The Bather I represents a compelling and important acquisition for collectors of significant works on paper and modern Australian modernism.

George BALDESSIN (1939 - 1978)
'The Bather I (Black and White)'
lithograph on paper
Edition of 300
Image Size: 57 x 57 cm
Dimensions: 88 x 84 x 4 cm
Unsigned. Editioned below image with publishers blindstamp
Comes with Letter of Provenance
This work has been editioned by Druckma Press in accordance with an initialed Bon A Tirer print.

An Artist Proof impression of this work is represented at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. Accession no.: 84.1306.

Exhibited: An impression of this work was exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria s 2018 exhibition Baldessin/Whiteley: Parallel Visions curated by Sasha Grishin. 
Condition isVery Good: Describes a work of art's image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear to paper or frame. There are no tears to paper margin or disruption to the paint surface.

(c) George Baldessin / Copyright Agency