This painting is in the tradition of the déjeuner sur l'herbe subjects of Manet and Monet from the mid-1860's, as well as being stylistically similar to Courbet. Country leisure, with activities such as picnicking and swimming, had provided new subjects for many modern painters at a time when escape from city life to the country--
the seashore or woods--had become increasingly popular. The reclining man in our painting, with his long, lean body and dark beard, bears a striking resemblance to Frédéric Bazille.