Footnotes

This work is included in the Tom Wesselmann Digital Corpus published by the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, and will be included in the forthcoming Tom Wesselmann Digital Catalogue Raisonné.

Provenance
Galerie Terminus, Munich.
Acquired from the above by the present owner.

Exhibited
Santa Monica, Fred Hoffman Fine Art, Tom Wesselmann, A Survey: 1959-1995, 15 February - 13 April 1996.

Literature
S. Hunter, Tom Wesselmann, New York, 1994, no. 29 (illustrated p. 41).



Grand in scale, Nude, One Arm Down portrays a reclining female figure in an alluring pose, her arm extending beyond the plane of the vibrant space constructed by the artist. Formed with minimal lines composed of curved, cut aluminium, the present work features Tom Wesselmann's signature use of negative space, transforming the erotic details of the female form into something entirely unique. Describing his own work, Wesselmann famously stated, "A tit by itself loses titness. If she's on her back, the tit looks like a mountain" (quoted in Wesselmann's Fancy Footwork, Art Voices 5, no. 3, Summer 1966, p. 47). Here, the figure is distilled to the fundamental attributes ascribed to a female nude—hair, lips, breasts, and sex. While perceptibly erotic, the subject becomes depersonalised, shifting the viewer's focus from the overall figure to its individual characteristics. Nude, One Arm Down perfectly embodies Wesselmann's signature aesthetic: bold colours, painterly details, a lush interior setting with flowing drapery, and art historical reference—seen in the lower portion of a framed painting positioned at the top horizontal edge. This composition underscores the artist's mastery of painting, drawing, and sculpture, resulting in a dynamic and striking work of art.

Wesselmann's female nudes are among the most celebrated and recognisable subjects in the 20th Century, most notably exemplified in his Great American Nude series, initiated in 1961. Nude, One Arm Down is an extension of this iconic series, maintaining its grand scale, vibrant palette, and compositional complexity while introducing a novel and innovative execution. In 1981, the artist began experimenting with translating his two-dimensional works into three-dimensional forms, transforming his drawings into cut steel and aluminium compositions. He explained, "My original idea was to preserve the process and immediacy of my drawings from life, complete with the false lines and errors, and realize them in steel. It was as though the lines had just been miraculously drawn in steel" (Tom Wesselmann: New Metal Paintings, exh. cat., Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, 1992, n.p.). By incorporating the third dimension, Wesselmann intensified the two-dimensional experience of his paintings. Just as he employed negative space to create new forms, he used three-dimensionality as a tool to further enhance the viewer's interaction with the work.

A native of Cincinnati, Wesselmann moved to New York to study at Cooper Union after serving as an aerial photography interpreter during the Korean War. During his military service, he sketched cartoons to uplift his spirits and soon discovered an affinity for drawing. Enrolling at Cooper Union in 1956, Wesselmann was immersed in the height of Abstract Expressionism, a movement that profoundly influenced his work. Particularly inspired by Willem de Kooning—whose influential series of 'Women' integrated figuration within abstraction—Wesselmann also drew from Henri Matisse's use of bold colours and expressive figures. However, he ultimately moved away from Abstract Expressionism, instead refining his practice through extensive nude figure drawing, a theme that would become central to his artistic career.

Nude, One Arm Down serves as an exceptional example of Wesselmann's return to the Abstract Expressionist influences of his early career, featuring broad, sweeping swaths of colour in abstracted shapes that layer to create a complex dimensionality. Though appearing effortless and refined, the work is the result of an intricate process and meticulous fabrication. Wesselmann first constructed a small collage of coloured brushstrokes on clear plastic film, then transferred these compositions onto large, cut-out aluminium structures, exaggerating the layering effects of the plastic sheets. The extension of the picture plane heightens the viewer's engagement by introducing the third dimension. The juxtaposition of abstraction and figuration, along with the interplay between machine-made and hand-painted elements, culminates in a visually compelling and intricate composition on a monumental scale.

Despite being considered a pioneer in one of the most significant artistic movements of the 20th century, Wesselmann resisted the Pop Art label. To him, his works were a personal exploration and discovery rather than a reflection of the consumerist themes and popular imagery typically associated with the movement. Wesselmann's artistic objective was one of continuous growth and transformation—a trajectory clearly evident throughout his extensive body of work. Transcending conventional categorization, Nude, One Arm Down exemplifies the artist's boundary-pushing and innovative approach.