Image source: Wikimedia Commons (Public domain). View source
Stag at Sharkey's
George Bellows · Early Modern (Fauvism, Cubism, Expressionism)
- Artist
- George Bellows (1882–1925)
- Date
- 1909
- Dimensions
- 92 x 122.6 cm
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Location
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, United States
Stag at Sharkey's shows two boxers locked in a violent clinch in a smoky private club in New York, surrounded by a shouting, jeering crowd of men. At the time, public prize fights were illegal, so clubs got around the law by making spectators members for the night.
A closer look
The two fighters lunge at each other, their muscular bodies forming a triangle at the centre, lit by a harsh overhead light. Bellows painted them with rapid, slashing brushstrokes that convey the energy, sweat and brutality of the fight. Below, the faces of the spectators are distorted with excitement, almost caricatures. Bellows, who had been an athlete himself, often watched fights at Tom Sharkey's saloon across the street from his studio. The painting is a key work of the Ashcan School, which depicted the gritty realities of modern city life.
More by George Bellows
In this gallery
Famous works elsewhere
- The Barricade 1918
- Florence Davey 1914
- Cliff Dwellers 1913
- Both Members of This Club 1909
- Miss Bentham 1906
- Men of the Docks 1912