The Bather by Rockwell Kent

The Bather is a wood engraving created by Rockwell Kent in 1931. It is one of 120 proofs printed by Elmer Adler. The Bather is number 63 in The Prints of Rockwell Kent: A Catalogue Raisonné, by Dan Burne Jones. It is inscribed “To Egmont” (most likely Egmont Arens) and signed lower right.

According to Burne Jones, this is one of 12 prints by the artist that were used in a national advertising campaign for the American Car and Foundry Company (ACFC). The ads ran monthly during 1930-1931. Of the 120 proofs, one-hundred remained with the artist and the remainder were given to the advertising agency that commissioned Kent – Calkins and Holden – and its client – ACFC.

A related drawing that appears in Burne Jones’s entry for this print is captioned by Kent: “Rockwell Kent/Sketch for wood block/(not executed)/original ‘Bather.'” A block of this image was engraved but not published. It reappeared as a posthumous print – known as “Reveries” – pulled by Letterio Calapai.