Ada with Bathing Cap by Alex Katz

Ada is the artist's wife.  He is a New Yorker who spends his summers in Maine

The colour of her cap is fabulous against the water and her red lips.  She is looking slightly down and unfocused.  You can't tell what she is thinking.

Although this is a realistic painting it also has modern elements – like the planes of her neck.

The artist did lots of paintings of Ada.  This one dates from 1965

My attention was drawn to this work by a huge doorstop of a book I got from the library – The Art Book from Phaidon Press.  Get it out if you have strong enough muscles.   There are 579 pages, each dedicated to one work by an artist.  The artists are in alpha order so you get interesting juxtapositions between modern art and old masters.