Splitting her time between Hawaii and California, Carol Bennett (b. 1954) has mastered the art of capturing movement in her enigmatic paintings.
While Bennett has garnered praise for the meditative sensibility that characterizes her paintings as well as a bold use of bright colors, some of her works are more famous than others. In fact, her “Women in Water” series is perhaps her most well-known collection. As its name implies, the series features women swimming. They’re captured from an underwater perspective, and their faces are either out of frame entirely or obscured by the sun-dappled surface of the water, which serves as a showcase for Bennett’s portrayal of the qualities of sunlight. The upper half of each painting is flecked with the blues and greens of the ocean as well as whatever color the subject’s bathing suit happens to be.
The series originated with Bennett sketching swimmers at an athletic club’s pool in Los Angeles, but as her process evolved, her husband, Wayne Zebzda, began to film the artist on her daily swim on Kauai. The resultant images inform her work, but she doesn’t consider these works to be depictions of her in particular.
“I swim seven days a week, and while I don’t consider them self-portraits, I am the swimmer in the paintings,” Bennett has said.
Given her constant proximity to the ocean, it’s no surprise that Bennett is inspired by water’s glassy properties, citing its presence as both “a mirror and then a window.” Her radiant paintings, whether she’s working with oil and shellac on paper or wood panels, allow her to explore sunlight in such a rich and provocative way that it’s as if she endeavors to suspend rays of light above the water’s surface, making them seem as tangible and physical as the swimmers themselves.
Aside from her works that hang on the walls of galleries and museums around the world, Bennett has also painted murals and even a 48-foot photovoltaic solar canopy for the Hawaii State Art Museum Sculpture Garden.
Find Carol Bennett’s paintings on 1stDibs.
$3,200
"Winter White" reflective painting of woman in white bathing suit underwater
By Carol Bennett
Located in Edgartown, MA
"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...
Canvas, Oil
"Lighten Up" a woman in white bathing suit, arms outstretched, drifting
By Carol Bennett
Located in Edgartown, MA
"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...
Canvas, Oil
"Amy" side profile of a woman with white bathing suit floating up for air
By Carol Bennett
Located in Edgartown, MA
"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...
Canvas, Oil
Sold|$17,280
H 58 in W 40 in
Female Figure Painting, Flora, Bold lines, Apples & Earth by America Martin
By America Martin
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
America Martin "Apples & Earth", 2014 Oil & Acrylic on Canvas 57 x 39 in (144.78 x 99.06 cm) Framed 58 x 40 in America Martin is an internationally represented Colombian-Am...
Oil, Acrylic, Canvas
$643
H 15.75 in W 11.82 in D 0.6 in
"Beauty Moment" Oil Painting on Linen Canvas, Modern Figurative Art
By Natalya Mougenot
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This modern painting, titled "Beauty Moment," illustrates a woman seated in an armchair, wrapped in a red bath towel, as she indulges in her morning beauty routine to prepare for a b...
Oil, Canvas
$3,250
H 24 in W 20 in
"Abstract Visage XVI" Portrait Oil Painting 24" x 20" inch by Ashraf Zamzami
By Ashraf Zamzami
Located in Culver City, CA
"Abstract Visage XVI" Portrait Oil Painting 24" x 20" inch by Ashraf Zamzami ABOUT Ashraf El Zamzami was a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Minya, and he fast made a name fo...
Canvas, Oil
$995
H 24.02 in W 19.69 in D 0.6 in
Contemporary expressive figurative portrait oil painting of a woman on canvas
By Natalya Mougenot
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This contemporary figurative painting "Embrace your strengths" featuring a woman with long black hair wearing a dark blue blouse on a red background makes part of my series dedicate...
Oil, Canvas
$8,500
H 25.5 in W 21.5 in
At the Plaza - John F. Kennedy, Oil Painting Portrait by Alex Schloss
By Russ Elliott
Located in Long Island City, NY
At the Plaza - John F. Kennedy by Alex Schloss, American (1921 - 2011) Date: 1991 Oil on canvas, signed and titled lower right Size: 24 x 20 in. (60.96 x 50.8 cm) Frame Size: 25.5...
Canvas, Oil
$24,000Sale Price|20% Off
H 46.5 in W 93.5 in
Figure Painting, Bright & Vivid, Bold lines, Wishing Star by America Martin
By America Martin
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
America Martin "Wishing Star" Oil & Acrylic on Canvas 45 x 92 in (114.3 x 233.68 cm) Framed 46.5 x 93.5 in America Martin is an internationally represented Colombian-American f...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$761
H 15.75 in W 11.82 in D 0.6 in
"Meditation "(contemporary figurative painting of woman with a book)
By Natalya Mougenot
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This contemporary figurative painting "Meditation " featuring a woman wearing a red blouse and blue jeans with a book in her hands on a light blue background makes part of my series ...
Canvas, Oil, Linen
$120,000
H 60 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
'Masri' by Masri - Large Colorful Contemporary Abstract Self Portrait Painting
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri (Lebanese, born 1965) "Masri" 2023 Oil paint, Acrylic paint, Canvas, Stretcher bars The artist signed the bottom right and back of the painting. Masri’s "Masri" is a striking ...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
$27,500
H 28 in W 22 in D 0.75 in
"Her" - Bold Colorful Modern Mixed Media Textured Abstract Portrait of a Woman
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri Hayssam (Lebanese, born 1965) "Her" 2022 Oil and acrylic paint on paper adhered to a stretched canvas Signed on the bottom right and back of the painting. "Her" by Masri captu...
Canvas, Paper, Mixed Media, Glue, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
$59,327
H 78.75 in W 110.24 in
Da Quale Pulpito! Oil Painting on Canvas Rome Mythology In Stock
By Giovanni Tommasi Ferroni
Located in Utrecht, NL
Da Quale Pulpito! Oil Painting on Canvas Rome Mythology In Stock Giovanni Tommasi Ferroni (1967, Rome) comes from a well-established family of artists in Tuscany. His grandfather, fa...
Canvas, Oil
$38,000
H 36 in W 24 in D 0.75 in
"Disrupted" by Masri - Colorful Abstract Portrait Painted with Artist Bare Hands
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri Hayssam (Lebanese, born 1965) "Disrupted" 2024 Oil Paint, Acrylic Paint, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the bottom right and back of the painting. "Disr...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
$257
H 11.03 in W 7.88 in D 0.6 in
Abstract expressionist portrait of Frida Kahlo oil canvas "Frida without fear"
By Mougenot Natalya
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
"Frida without fear" is a contemporary, faceless abstract portrait of Frida Kahlo by French artist Natalya Mougenot. Blending elements of impressionism and expressionism, the work re...
Cotton Canvas, Oil