Beauty and the Beach looks at the complex relationship between the bathing suit, social and cultural values, and women's body image in the 20th century. Beginning with the arrest of long distance swimmer Annette Kellerman in 1907 for appearing in a one-piece bathing suit, to the public outcry in the sixties over the bikini and the topless bathing suit, changing swimsuit styles not only influenced morality, but also helped chart the changing images of women in the twentieth century.
—Joan Prowse