Paris 1924: Sport, Art and the Body

In less than two weeks’ time, the French capital will once again host the Olympic Games. Paris was last home to the sporting event exactly a century ago, when the number of competing national Olympic committees grew from 29 to 44, a closing ceremony was added and live radio allowed the Games to be broadcast around the world for the first time. To coincide with this edition of the Olympics, the Fitzwilliam Museum is putting on an exhibition dedicated to the 1924 Games, which considers their impact on art, film, photography, fashion, and other forms of cultural life (19 July–3 November). The exhibition also looks at the increased fascination among artists with the ‘sporting body’ in the period, as seen in works such as The Gymnast (c. 1922) by George Grosz and The Runners (c. 1924) by Robert Delaunay.

Find out more from the Fitzwilliam’s website.

Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary

The Gymnast (c. 1922), George Grosz. McNay Art Museum, San Antonio. © Estate of George Grosz, Princeton, N.J./DACS 2024

Johnny Weissmuller posing for John Hubbard Rich (c. 1931), Pach Brothers. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington

The Runners (c. 1924), Robert Delaunay. National Museum of Serbia, Belgrade