Colour me beautiful
Pop Art at 50
BERNARD RANCILLAC’S “At Last, a Silhouette Slimmed to the Waist” (pictured) contains a clear visual pun. Painted in 1966 and set against bright green jungle, it shows a soldier plunging a Vietcong prisoner headfirst into a large water vessel. Pushing his boot down on his captive’s back, gripping his twisted leg, the soldier submerges the man to the waist. At the top of the canvas, floating above this scene, five women stretch and pose in body-shaping lingerie. Labels point out their slimming corsets.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Colour me beautiful”
From the September 12th 2015 edition
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