• In Van Dyke’s 1932 Hollywood classic, Tarzan the Ape Man, the superman hero wrestled with jungle beasts and had the audience enthralled by his head-spinning jumps into rivers and waterfalls.

• In 1948, Russian poet Konstantin Simonov was taking quite a different plunge and not so sure of universal admiration: And stepping forward I begin to speak First words are like a dash to battle – No falling back. Standing up high, the swimmer is braced for a dive. It is a frozen moment. One more second and the pent-up force of the springboard will throw him into the water. Diving is like entering into a new day where morning blushes with the promise of luck. The painting also could be described as “winding up luck” considering the spiral staircase in the form of a twisting plant that the diver has used to ascend to his current position. The golden light of dawn is a symbol of optimism and hope – that the best is yet to come. Man lends a shoulder to happiness in the form of a butterfly with which he may land or take off.