Frederic Bazille, Fisherman With a Net, 1868

By ALEXA BIRT
Oh my god, Becky, look at his butt. His chiseled back and leg muscles, the proud and unashamed stance, it all just screams "art history hottie." Jean Frederic Bazille undoubtedly created this masterpiece with that in mind and does so by placing the man in the manliest of settings: a lush plot of prairie grass.

The man peers cheekily behind his shoulder, beckoning the viewer to gaze upon his bootyful presence. His confident posture contradicts the physical vulnerability the man bears, given his astonishing lack of clothing which seems to be in a mound off to the side of the painting. Maybe he's a bum and needs to hunt for food in order to survive? The fish net wrapped around his wrist and draped off to his left side certainly suggests this theory. Then again, it was considered normal in Europe to fish in the nude in 1868, the year these beautiful buns were born.

While he seems to be doing all the heavy lifting, in the rear of the painting, his friend sits on his laurels taking off his own clothes, perhaps adding to the clothing pile. In addition, his right arm seems to be peculiarly more muscular than the other one… it must be a real bummer living as a naked prairie man. The homosexual undertone in this painting must be in response to the opposition and repression of homosexuality present during the time in which this painting was created. Bazille never married either, and his intimate relationships with men suggest that he might have been gay himself, though it is never a good idea to make assumptions. Seeing that Bazille is now deceased, I guess we will never get to the bottom of this issue. I suppose we can only guess based on his artwork.

One thing's for sure, he was all about that bass.