Nude Woman Reading

Robert Delaunay, a French artist who, with his wife Sonia Delaunay and others, co-founded the Orphism art movement painted nine versions of the nude woman reading theme. In general, Delaunay rarely painted the nude figure. Unlike many other early 20th-century abstractionists, however, Delaunay also continued to paint figurative works. In this category is the Nude Woman Reading, where the same color principles used in the abstract paintings are now applied to the human figure.

Orphism, or Orphic Cubism, as a term coined by the French poet Guillaume Apollinaire in 1912, was an offshoot of Cubism that focused on pure abstraction and bright colors, influenced by Fauvism, the theoretical writings of Paul Signac, Charles Henry, and the dye chemist Eugène Chevreul. This movement is perceived as key in the transition from Cubism to Abstract art. We can see the Orphism principals here: the oval format of the image echoes and accentuates the soft, leaning curve of the woman’s body, and the curve of the oval is repeated in the lines of her hip and left leg. The curvilinear shapes of the body are present in miniature form in the pattern of the cloth on the dressing table. The color is a similarly balanced yet dynamic arrangement, based on the principles of complementary contrast, which were the foundation of Delaunay’s color theories.

P.S. See how Robert Delaunay painted the iconic Eiffel Tower in one of his most famous works! Will you recognize the Parisian symbol interpreted by the artist?

P.P.S. Another pioneer of Orphism was František Kupka ... and what is amazing, in the DailyArt Shop you can buy his work as a super high-quality print!