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| movement = [[Orphism (art)|Orphism]]
| movement = [[Orphism (art)|Orphism]]
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'''Sonia Delaunay''' (nėe Terk) (November 14, 1885 – December 5, 1979) was a [[Jews|Jewish]]-[[France|French]] artist who, with her husband [[Robert Delaunay]] and others, cofounded the [[Orphism (art)|Orphism]] [[art movement]], noted for its use of strong colours and geometric shapes. Her work extends to painting, textile design and stage set design. She was the first living female artist to have a retrospective exhibition at the [[Louvre]] in 1964, and in 1975 was named an officer of the [[French Legion of Honor]].
'''Sonia Delaunay''' (nėe Terk, November 14, 1885 – December 5, 1979) was a [[Jews|Jewish]]-[[France|French]] artist who, with her husband [[Robert Delaunay]] and others, cofounded the [[Orphism (art)|Orphism]] [[art movement]], noted for its use of strong colours and geometric shapes. Her work extends to painting, textile design and stage set design. She was the first living female artist to have a retrospective exhibition at the [[Louvre]] in 1964, and in 1975 was named an officer of the [[French Legion of Honor]].


Her work in modern design included the concepts of [[geometric abstraction]], the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings, and clothing.
Her work in modern design included the concepts of [[geometric abstraction]], the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings, and clothing.
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==Biography==
==Biography==
===Early life (1885-1904)===
===Early life (1885-1904)===
''Sarah Ilinitchna Stern'' was probably born in Gradizhske, then in the [[Russian Empire]], today in [[Poltava Oblast]] in the [[Ukraine]], on 14 November 1885<ref>[[#baron95|Baron and Damase]] point out that much about Sonia Delaunay's early life is ambiguous or unknown: "(...) there were parts of her past that she did not easily discuss. (...) the first twenty years of her life (...) can hardly be called a detailed account. Even the actual date of her birth is ambiguous." (page 7). Odessa is mentioned as alternative place of birth, 4 November 1885 as less likely date.</ref>. At a young age she moved to [[St. Petersburg]], where she was cared for by her mother's brother, Henri Terk. Henri, a successful and affluent Jewish lawyer, and his wife Anna wanted to adopt her but her mother would not allow it. Finally in 1890 she was adopted by the Terks.{{Citation needed|date=September 2007}} She assumed the name Sonia Terk and received a privileged upbringing with the Terks, they spent their summers in [[Finland]] and traveled widely in Europe introducing Sonia to art museums and galleries. When she was 16 she attended a well-regarded secondary school in St. Petersburg, where her skill at drawing was noted by her teacher. When she was 18, at her teacher's suggestion, she was sent to art school in [[Germany]] where she attended the [[Academy of Fine Arts]] in [[Karlsruhe]]. She studied in Germany until 1905 when she decided to move on to [[Paris]].<ref>(Letters show that although Sonia spent some time in Paris in 1905, she was still studying in Karlsruhe in 1906 and living in St. Petersburg in 1908, trying to obtain her parents' permission to move to Paris. She finally arranged a marriage to art dealer Wilhelm Uhde, which allowed the move to Paris in 1908.)</ref>
'''Sarah Ilinitchna Stern''' was probably born in Gradizhske, then in the [[Russian Empire]], today in [[Poltava Oblast]] in the [[Ukraine]], on 14 November 1885.<ref>[[#baron95|Baron and Damase]] point out that much about Sonia Delaunay's early life is ambiguous or unknown: "(...) there were parts of her past that she did not easily discuss. (...) the first twenty years of her life (...) can hardly be called a detailed account. Even the actual date of her birth is ambiguous." (page 7). Odessa is mentioned as alternative place of birth, 4 November 1885 as less likely date.</ref> At a young age she moved to [[St. Petersburg]], where she was cared for by her mother's brother, Henri Terk. Henri, a successful and affluent Jewish lawyer, and his wife Anna wanted to adopt her but her mother would not allow it. Finally in 1890 she was adopted by the Terks.{{Citation needed|date=September 2007}} She assumed the name Sonia Terk and received a privileged upbringing with the Terks, they spent their summers in [[Finland]] and traveled widely in Europe introducing Sonia to art museums and galleries. When she was 16 she attended a well-regarded secondary school in St. Petersburg, where her skill at drawing was noted by her teacher. When she was 18, at her teacher's suggestion, she was sent to art school in [[Germany]] where she attended the [[Academy of Fine Arts]] in [[Karlsruhe]]. She studied in Germany until 1905 when she decided to move on to [[Paris]].<ref>(Letters show that although Sonia spent some time in Paris in 1905, she was still studying in Karlsruhe in 1906 and living in St. Petersburg in 1908, trying to obtain her parents' permission to move to Paris. She finally arranged a marriage to art dealer Wilhelm Uhde, which allowed the move to Paris in 1908.)</ref>


===Paris (1905-1910)===
===Paris (1905-1910)===
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In 1911, Sonia made a patchwork quilt for Charles's crib, which is now in the collection of the [[Musée National d'Art Moderne]] in Paris. This quilt was created spontaneously and uses geometry and color.
In 1911, Sonia made a patchwork quilt for Charles's crib, which is now in the collection of the [[Musée National d'Art Moderne]] in Paris. This quilt was created spontaneously and uses geometry and color.
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
"About 1911 I had the idea of making for my son, who had just been born, a blanket composed of bits of fabric like those I had seen in the houses of Russian peasants. When it was finished, the arrangement of the pieces of material seemed to me to evoke cubist conceptions and we then tried to apply the same process to other objects and paintings," Sonia Delaunay <ref>Quoted in Manifestations of Venus, Caroline Arscott, Katie Scott Manchester University Press, 2000, p131</ref>
"About 1911 I had the idea of making for my son, who had just been born, a blanket composed of bits of fabric like those I had seen in the houses of Russian peasants. When it was finished, the arrangement of the pieces of material seemed to me to evoke cubist conceptions and we then tried to apply the same process to other objects and paintings." Sonia Delaunay<ref>Quoted in Manifestations of Venus, Caroline Arscott, Katie Scott Manchester University Press, 2000, p131</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
Contemporary art critics recognize this as the point where she moved away from perspective and naturalism in her art. Around the same time, [[cubism|cubist]] works were being shown in Paris and Robert had been studying the color theories of [[Michel Eugène Chevreul]]; they called their experiments with color in art and design ''simultanéisme''. Simultaneous design occurs when one design, when placed next to another, affects both; this is similar to the theory of colors ([[Pointillism]], as used by e.g. [[Georges Seurat]]) in which primary color dots placed next to each other are "mixed" by the eye and affect each other. Sonia's first large-scale painting in this style was ''Bal Bullier'' (1912–13), a painting known for both its use of color and movement.
Contemporary art critics recognize this as the point where she moved away from perspective and naturalism in her art. Around the same time, [[cubism|cubist]] works were being shown in Paris and Robert had been studying the color theories of [[Michel Eugène Chevreul]]; they called their experiments with color in art and design ''simultanéisme''. Simultaneous design occurs when one design, when placed next to another, affects both; this is similar to the theory of colors ([[Pointillism]], as used by e.g. [[Georges Seurat]]) in which primary color dots placed next to each other are "mixed" by the eye and affect each other. Sonia's first large-scale painting in this style was ''Bal Bullier'' (1912–13), a painting known for both its use of color and movement.
Line 41: Line 41:


===Spanish and Portuguese years (1914-1920)===
===Spanish and Portuguese years (1914-1920)===
The Delaunays travelled to Spain in 1914, staying with friends in Madrid. At the outbreak of the [[World War I|First World War]] in 1914 Sonia and Robert were staying in [[Fontarabie]], with their son still in Madrid. They decided not to return to France<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p55. Sonia returned to Paris briefly to make arrangements for their absence.</ref>. In August 1915 they moved to Portugal where they shared a home with [[Samuel Halpert]] and [[Eduardo Viana]]<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p56, [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p209, and [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p51 all mention an Eduardo Vianna, but there is no trace of a painter with that name. Viana, however, was acquainted with the Delaunays</ref>. With Viana and their friends [[Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso]], whom the Delaunays had already met in Paris<ref>[[#hd95|Düchting]]: p52</ref>, and [[José de Almada Negreiros]] they discussed an artistic partnership<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p209</ref>. In Portugal she painted ''Marché au Minho'' (''the market at Minho'', 1916), which she later says was "inspired by the beauty of the country"<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p202</ref>. Sonia had a solo exhibition in Stockholm (1916).
The Delaunays travelled to Spain in 1914, staying with friends in Madrid. At the outbreak of the [[World War I|First World War]] in 1914 Sonia and Robert were staying in [[Fontarabie]], with their son still in Madrid. They decided not to return to France.<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p55. Sonia returned to Paris briefly to make arrangements for their absence.</ref> In August 1915 they moved to Portugal where they shared a home with [[Samuel Halpert]] and [[Eduardo Viana]].<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p56, [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p209, and [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p51 all mention an Eduardo Vianna, but there is no trace of a painter with that name. Viana, however, was acquainted with the Delaunays</ref> With Viana and their friends [[Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso]], whom the Delaunays had already met in Paris,<ref>[[#hd95|Düchting]]: p52</ref> and [[José de Almada Negreiros]] they discussed an artistic partnership.<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p209</ref> In Portugal she painted ''Marché au Minho'' (''the market at Minho'', 1916), which she later says was "inspired by the beauty of the country".<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p202</ref> Sonia had a solo exhibition in Stockholm (1916).


The [[Russian Revolution of 1917|Russian Revolution]] brought an end to the financial support Sonia received from her family in Russia, and a different source of income was needed. In 1917 the Delaunays met [[Diaghilev|Sergei Diaghilev]] in Madrid. Sonia designed costumes for his production of ''Cleopatra'' (stage design by [[Robert Delaunay]]) and for the performance of [[Aida]] in Barcelona. In Madrid she decorated the ''Petit Casino'' (a nightclub) and founded ''Casa Sonia'', selling her designs for interior decoration and fashion, with a branch in [[Bilbao]].<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p72, Valérie Guillaume: ''Sonia und Tissus Delaunay''. In [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p31, [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p52, p91. According to [[#aif|Morano]] (p19), branches in Bilbao and Barcelona never actually opened.</ref> She was the center of a Madrid [[Salon (gathering)|Salon]]<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p72. Diaghilev met [[Manuel de Falla]] at this salon. The two would later cooperate on [[The Three-Cornered Hat]].</ref>.
The [[Russian Revolution of 1917|Russian Revolution]] brought an end to the financial support Sonia received from her family in Russia, and a different source of income was needed. In 1917 the Delaunays met [[Diaghilev|Sergei Diaghilev]] in Madrid. Sonia designed costumes for his production of ''Cleopatra'' (stage design by [[Robert Delaunay]]) and for the performance of [[Aida]] in Barcelona. In Madrid she decorated the ''Petit Casino'' (a nightclub) and founded ''Casa Sonia'', selling her designs for interior decoration and fashion, with a branch in [[Bilbao]].<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p72, Valérie Guillaume: ''Sonia und Tissus Delaunay''. In [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p31, [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p52, p91. According to [[#aif|Morano]] (p19), branches in Bilbao and Barcelona never actually opened.</ref> She was the center of a Madrid [[Salon (gathering)|Salon]].<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p72. Diaghilev met [[Manuel de Falla]] at this salon. The two would later cooperate on [[The Three-Cornered Hat]].</ref>


Sonia Delaunay travelled to Paris twice in 1920 looking for opportunities in the fashion business<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p75</ref>, and in August she wrote a letter to [[Paul Poiret]] stating she wants to expand her business and include some of his designs. Poiret declined, claiming she has copied designs from his ''Ateliers de Martine'' and is married to a French deserter ([[Robert Delaunay|Robert]]).<ref>Valérie Guillaume: ''Sonia und Tissus Delaunay''. In [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p31</ref> [[Der Sturm|Galerie der Sturm]] in [[Berlin]] showed works by Sonia and Robert from their Portuguese period the same year<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p216, [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p91</ref>.
Sonia Delaunay travelled to Paris twice in 1920 looking for opportunities in the fashion business,<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p75</ref> and in August she wrote a letter to [[Paul Poiret]] stating she wants to expand her business and include some of his designs. Poiret declined, claiming she has copied designs from his ''Ateliers de Martine'' and is married to a French deserter ([[Robert Delaunay|Robert]]).<ref>Valérie Guillaume: ''Sonia und Tissus Delaunay''. In [[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p31</ref> [[Der Sturm|Galerie der Sturm]] in [[Berlin]] showed works by Sonia and Robert from their Portuguese period the same year.<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p216, [[#hd95|Düchting]]: p91</ref>


===Return to Paris (1921-1944)===
===Return to Paris (1921-1944)===
Line 70: Line 70:


===Later life (1945-1979)===
===Later life (1945-1979)===
[[Image:MatraM530 SoniaDelaunay.JPG|thumb|left|[[Matra 530|Matra M530A]] painted by Sonia Delaunay]]After the second world war, Sonia was a board member of the [[Salon des Réalités Nouvelles]] for several years<ref>[[#jda03|Journal des Arts]]</ref>. Sonia and her son Charles in 1964 donated 114 works by Sonia and Robert to the [[Musée National d'Art Moderne]]<ref>[[#cp03|Press release Centre Pompidou]]: "The exhibition comprises some ninety works by Robert and Sonia Delaunay, chosen from the donation which itself totals one hundred and fourteen paintings, drawings, bound books, reliefs and mosaics."</ref>. [[Alberto Magnelli]] told her "she and [[Braque]] were the only living painters to have been shown at the [[Louvre]]"<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p170</ref>. In 1966 she published ''Rythmes-Couleurs'' (color-rhythms), with 11 of her [[gouache]]s reproduced as [[stencil|pochoirs]] and texts by [[Jacques Damase]]<ref name=rc>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p194. [[#rc66|Rythmes-Couleurs]] is an [[artist's book]] in a limited edition of 120 copies.</ref>, and in 1969 ''Robes poèmes'' (poem-dresses), also with texts by Jacques Damase containing 27 pochoirs<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p221. ''Robes Poèmes'' is an artists's book in a limited edition of 500 copies.</ref>. For Matra, she decorated a [[Matra 530]]. In 1975 Sonia was named an officer of the [[French Legion of Honor]]. Her autobiography, ''Nous irons jusqu'au soleil'' (''We shall go up to the sun'') was published in 1978<ref name=soleil>Sonia Delaunay, Jacques Damase, Patrick Raynaud (1978): ''Nous irons jusqu'au soleil'', Editions Robert Laffont, ISBN 2221000633</ref>.
[[Image:MatraM530 SoniaDelaunay.JPG|thumb|left|[[Matra 530|Matra M530A]] painted by Sonia Delaunay]]After the second world war, Sonia was a board member of the [[Salon des Réalités Nouvelles]] for several years<ref>[[#jda03|Journal des Arts]]</ref>. Sonia and her son Charles in 1964 donated 114 works by Sonia and Robert to the [[Musée National d'Art Moderne]]<ref>[[#cp03|Press release Centre Pompidou]]: "The exhibition comprises some ninety works by Robert and Sonia Delaunay, chosen from the donation which itself totals one hundred and fourteen paintings, drawings, bound books, reliefs and mosaics."</ref>. [[Alberto Magnelli]] told her "she and [[Braque]] were the only living painters to have been shown at the [[Louvre]]"<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p170</ref>. In 1966 she published ''Rythmes-Couleurs'' (color-rhythms), with 11 of her [[gouache]]s reproduced as [[stencil|pochoirs]] and texts by [[Jacques Damase]],<ref name=rc>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p194. [[#rc66|Rythmes-Couleurs]] is an [[artist's book]] in a limited edition of 120 copies.</ref> and in 1969 ''Robes poèmes'' (poem-dresses), also with texts by Jacques Damase containing 27 pochoirs<ref>[[#kh99|Kunsthalle]]: p221. ''Robes Poèmes'' is an artists's book in a limited edition of 500 copies.</ref>. For Matra, she decorated a [[Matra 530]]. In 1975 Sonia was named an officer of the [[French Legion of Honor]]. Her autobiography, ''Nous irons jusqu'au soleil'' (''We shall go up to the sun'') was published in 1978<ref name=soleil>Sonia Delaunay, Jacques Damase, Patrick Raynaud (1978): ''Nous irons jusqu'au soleil'', Editions Robert Laffont, ISBN 2221000633</ref>.


Sonia Delaunay died December 5, 1979 in [[Paris]], aged 94. She was buried in [[Gambais]], next to Robert Delaunay's grave<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p201</ref>.
Sonia Delaunay died December 5, 1979, in [[Paris]], aged 94. She was buried in [[Gambais]], next to Robert Delaunay's grave.<ref>[[#baron95|Baron/Damase]]: p201</ref>


Her work in modern design included the use of geometric abstraction and the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings and clothing. Jazz expert [[Charles Delaunay]] is her son.
Her work in modern design included the use of geometric abstraction and the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings and clothing. Jazz expert [[Charles Delaunay]] is her son.

Revision as of 01:41, 1 August 2011

Sonia Delaunay
Rythme 1938
Born
Sarah Ilinitchna Stern

(1885-11-14)14 November 1885
Russian Empire
Died5 December 1979(1979-12-05) (aged 94)
Paris, France
NationalityRussian, French
Known forPainting
MovementOrphism

Sonia Delaunay (nėe Terk, November 14, 1885 – December 5, 1979) was a Jewish-French artist who, with her husband Robert Delaunay and others, cofounded the Orphism art movement, noted for its use of strong colours and geometric shapes. Her work extends to painting, textile design and stage set design. She was the first living female artist to have a retrospective exhibition at the Louvre in 1964, and in 1975 was named an officer of the French Legion of Honor.

Her work in modern design included the concepts of geometric abstraction, the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings, and clothing.

Biography

Early life (1885-1904)

Sarah Ilinitchna Stern was probably born in Gradizhske, then in the Russian Empire, today in Poltava Oblast in the Ukraine, on 14 November 1885.[1] At a young age she moved to St. Petersburg, where she was cared for by her mother's brother, Henri Terk. Henri, a successful and affluent Jewish lawyer, and his wife Anna wanted to adopt her but her mother would not allow it. Finally in 1890 she was adopted by the Terks.[citation needed] She assumed the name Sonia Terk and received a privileged upbringing with the Terks, they spent their summers in Finland and traveled widely in Europe introducing Sonia to art museums and galleries. When she was 16 she attended a well-regarded secondary school in St. Petersburg, where her skill at drawing was noted by her teacher. When she was 18, at her teacher's suggestion, she was sent to art school in Germany where she attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Karlsruhe. She studied in Germany until 1905 when she decided to move on to Paris.[2]

Paris (1905-1910)

When she arrived in Paris she enrolled at the Académie de la Palette in Montparnasse. Unhappy with the mode of teaching, which she thought was too critical, she spent less time at the Académie and more time in galleries around Paris. Her own work during this period was strongly influenced by the art she was viewing including the post-impressionist art of Van Gogh, Gauguin and Henri Rousseau and the fauves including Henri Matisse and Derain. During her first year in Paris she met, and in 1908 married, German homosexual art gallery owner Wilhelm Uhde. Little is known about their union, but it is assumed to have been a marriage of convenience to escape the demands of her parents, who disliked her artistic career, for her to return to Russia.[3] Sonia gained entrance into the art world via exhibitions at Uhde's gallery and benefitted from his connections, and Uhde masked his homosexuality through his public marriage to Sonia.[citation needed]

Comtesse de Rose, mother of Robert Delaunay, was a regular visitor to Uhde's gallery, sometimes accompanied by her son. Sonia met Robert Delaunay in early 1909. They became lovers in April of that year and it was decided that she and Uhde should divorce. The divorce was finalised in August 1910[4]. Sonia was pregnant and she and Robert married on November 15, 1910. Their son Charles was born on January 18, 1911.[5] They were supported by an allowance sent from Sonia's aunt in St. Petersburg.[citation needed]

Sonia said about Robert: "In Robert Delaunay I found a poet. A poet who wrote not with words but with colours"[5].

Orphism (1911-1913)

The last section of La prose du Transsibérien et de la Petite Jehanne de France, 1913

In 1911, Sonia made a patchwork quilt for Charles's crib, which is now in the collection of the Musée National d'Art Moderne in Paris. This quilt was created spontaneously and uses geometry and color.

"About 1911 I had the idea of making for my son, who had just been born, a blanket composed of bits of fabric like those I had seen in the houses of Russian peasants. When it was finished, the arrangement of the pieces of material seemed to me to evoke cubist conceptions and we then tried to apply the same process to other objects and paintings." Sonia Delaunay[6]

Contemporary art critics recognize this as the point where she moved away from perspective and naturalism in her art. Around the same time, cubist works were being shown in Paris and Robert had been studying the color theories of Michel Eugène Chevreul; they called their experiments with color in art and design simultanéisme. Simultaneous design occurs when one design, when placed next to another, affects both; this is similar to the theory of colors (Pointillism, as used by e.g. Georges Seurat) in which primary color dots placed next to each other are "mixed" by the eye and affect each other. Sonia's first large-scale painting in this style was Bal Bullier (1912–13), a painting known for both its use of color and movement.

The Delaunays' friend, the poet and art critic Guillaume Apollinaire, coined the term Orphism to describe the Delaunays' version of cubism in 1913. It was through Apollinaire that in 1912 Sonia met the poet Blaise Cendrars who was to become her friend and collaborator. She illustrated his poem La prose du Transsibérien et de la Petite Jehanne de France (Prose of the Trans-Siberian and of Little Jehanne of France) about a journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway, by creating a 2m-long accordion-pleated book. Using simultaneous design principles the book merged text and design. The book, which was sold almost entirely by subscription, created a stir amongst Paris critics. The simultaneous book was later shown at the Autumn Salon in Berlin in 1913 along with paintings and other applied artworks such as dresses, and it is said[who?] that Paul Klee was so impressed with her use of squares in her binding of Cendrars's poem that they became an enduring feature in his own work.

Spanish and Portuguese years (1914-1920)

The Delaunays travelled to Spain in 1914, staying with friends in Madrid. At the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 Sonia and Robert were staying in Fontarabie, with their son still in Madrid. They decided not to return to France.[7] In August 1915 they moved to Portugal where they shared a home with Samuel Halpert and Eduardo Viana.[8] With Viana and their friends Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso, whom the Delaunays had already met in Paris,[9] and José de Almada Negreiros they discussed an artistic partnership.[10] In Portugal she painted Marché au Minho (the market at Minho, 1916), which she later says was "inspired by the beauty of the country".[11] Sonia had a solo exhibition in Stockholm (1916).

The Russian Revolution brought an end to the financial support Sonia received from her family in Russia, and a different source of income was needed. In 1917 the Delaunays met Sergei Diaghilev in Madrid. Sonia designed costumes for his production of Cleopatra (stage design by Robert Delaunay) and for the performance of Aida in Barcelona. In Madrid she decorated the Petit Casino (a nightclub) and founded Casa Sonia, selling her designs for interior decoration and fashion, with a branch in Bilbao.[12] She was the center of a Madrid Salon.[13]

Sonia Delaunay travelled to Paris twice in 1920 looking for opportunities in the fashion business,[14] and in August she wrote a letter to Paul Poiret stating she wants to expand her business and include some of his designs. Poiret declined, claiming she has copied designs from his Ateliers de Martine and is married to a French deserter (Robert).[15] Galerie der Sturm in Berlin showed works by Sonia and Robert from their Portuguese period the same year.[16]

Return to Paris (1921-1944)

La Charmeuse de serpents by Henri Rousseau, 1907

Sonia, Robert and their son Charles returned to Paris permanently in 1921 and moved into Boulevard Malesherbes 19.[17] The Delaunay's most acute financial problems were solved when they sold La Charmeuse de serpents (the snake charmer) to Jacques Doucet.[18] Sonia Delaunay made clothes for private clients and friends, and in 1923 created fifty fabric designs using geometrical shapes and bold colours, commissioned by a manufacturer from Lyon.[19] Soon after, she started her own business and simultané became her registered trademark.

For the 1923 staging of Tristan Tzaras play Le Cœur à Gaz she designed the set and costumes[20]. In 1924 she opened a fashion studio together with Jacques Heim. Her customers included Nancy Cunard, Gloria Swanson, Lucienne Bogaert and Gabrielle Dorziat[21].

With Heim she had a pavilion at the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, called boutique simultané[22]. Sonia Delaunay gave a lecture at the Sorbonne[23] on the influence of painting on fashion.

"If there are geometric forms, it is because these simple and manageable elements have appeared suitable for the distribution of colors whose relations constitute the real object of our search, but these geometric forms do not characterize our art. The distribution of colors can be effected as well with complex forms, such as flowers, etc. ... only the handling of these would be a little more delicate."

Sonia Delaunay, speaking at the Sorbonne, 1927[24]

Sonia designed costumes for two films: Le Vertige directed by Marcel L'Herbier and Le p'tit Parigot, directed by René Le Somptier[25], and designed some furniture for the set of the 1929 film Parce que je t'aime (Because I love you)[26]. The Great Depression caused a decline in business. After closing her business, Sonia Delaunay returned to painting, but she still designed for Jacques Heim, Metz & Co and private clients. She said "the depression liberated her from business".[27] 1935 the Delaunays moved to rue Saint-Simon 16.[28]

By the end of 1934 Sonia was working on designs for the 1937 Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne, for which she and Robert worked together on decorating two pavilions: the Pavillon des Chemins de Fer and the Palais de l'Air. Sonia however did not want to be part of the contract for the commission, but chose to help Robert if she wanted. She said "I am free and mean to remain so."[29] The murals and painted panels for the exhibition were executed by fifty artists including Albert Gleizes, Léopold Survage, Jacques Villon, Roger Bissière and Jean Crotti.[30]

Robert Delaunay died of cancer in October 1941.

Later life (1945-1979)

Matra M530A painted by Sonia Delaunay

After the second world war, Sonia was a board member of the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles for several years[31]. Sonia and her son Charles in 1964 donated 114 works by Sonia and Robert to the Musée National d'Art Moderne[32]. Alberto Magnelli told her "she and Braque were the only living painters to have been shown at the Louvre"[33]. In 1966 she published Rythmes-Couleurs (color-rhythms), with 11 of her gouaches reproduced as pochoirs and texts by Jacques Damase,[34] and in 1969 Robes poèmes (poem-dresses), also with texts by Jacques Damase containing 27 pochoirs[35]. For Matra, she decorated a Matra 530. In 1975 Sonia was named an officer of the French Legion of Honor. Her autobiography, Nous irons jusqu'au soleil (We shall go up to the sun) was published in 1978[36].

Sonia Delaunay died December 5, 1979, in Paris, aged 94. She was buried in Gambais, next to Robert Delaunay's grave.[37]

Her work in modern design included the use of geometric abstraction and the integration of furniture, fabrics, wall coverings and clothing. Jazz expert Charles Delaunay is her son.

Legacy

Plaque at 16 rue Saint-Simon where the Delaunay's lived and where Sonia died.

Delaunay's painting Coccinelle was featured on a stamp jointly released by the French Post Office, La Poste and the United Kingdom's Royal Mail in 2004 to commemorate the centenary of the Entente Cordiale.

Notes and references

  1. ^ Baron and Damase point out that much about Sonia Delaunay's early life is ambiguous or unknown: "(...) there were parts of her past that she did not easily discuss. (...) the first twenty years of her life (...) can hardly be called a detailed account. Even the actual date of her birth is ambiguous." (page 7). Odessa is mentioned as alternative place of birth, 4 November 1885 as less likely date.
  2. ^ (Letters show that although Sonia spent some time in Paris in 1905, she was still studying in Karlsruhe in 1906 and living in St. Petersburg in 1908, trying to obtain her parents' permission to move to Paris. She finally arranged a marriage to art dealer Wilhelm Uhde, which allowed the move to Paris in 1908.)
  3. ^ Grosenick
  4. ^ The divorce took place February 28 and became final August 11, 1910. Baron/Damase: p17-20
  5. ^ a b Baron/Damase: p20
  6. ^ Quoted in Manifestations of Venus, Caroline Arscott, Katie Scott Manchester University Press, 2000, p131
  7. ^ Baron/Damase: p55. Sonia returned to Paris briefly to make arrangements for their absence.
  8. ^ Baron/Damase: p56, Kunsthalle: p209, and Düchting: p51 all mention an Eduardo Vianna, but there is no trace of a painter with that name. Viana, however, was acquainted with the Delaunays
  9. ^ Düchting: p52
  10. ^ Kunsthalle: p209
  11. ^ Kunsthalle: p202
  12. ^ Baron/Damase: p72, Valérie Guillaume: Sonia und Tissus Delaunay. In Kunsthalle: p31, Düchting: p52, p91. According to Morano (p19), branches in Bilbao and Barcelona never actually opened.
  13. ^ Baron/Damase: p72. Diaghilev met Manuel de Falla at this salon. The two would later cooperate on The Three-Cornered Hat.
  14. ^ Baron/Damase: p75
  15. ^ Valérie Guillaume: Sonia und Tissus Delaunay. In Kunsthalle: p31
  16. ^ Kunsthalle: p216, Düchting: p91
  17. ^ Boulevard Malesherbes 19, Paris: 48°52′19.29″N 2°19′18.58″E / 48.8720250°N 2.3218278°E / 48.8720250; 2.3218278
  18. ^ Robert Delaunay's mother had commissioned Rousseau to paint La Charmeuse de serpents, and it was sold to Doucet only on condition he bequeath it to the Louvre. Kunsthalle: p210, Baron/Damase: p83, Düchting: p33
  19. ^ The name of the company is not known. Baron/Damase: p83, Morano: p20
  20. ^ Baron/Damase: p80, Kunsthalle: p216, Düchting: p56
  21. ^ Kunsthalle: p218, Morano: p21
  22. ^ Baron/Damase: p81, p83. Morano: p21. Düchting: p56, Gronberg: p115. Guillaume: p33, cites Guévrékian as the architect of the pavilion.
  23. ^ Art into Fashion: p102, Baron/Damase: p84
  24. ^ Translated quote from Sonia Delaunay's lecture, from The New Art of Color: p207, also quoted in Morano: p22
  25. ^ Sonia designed costumes and contributed to styling the set, several of Robert's paintings were part of the set. Baron/Damase: p84, Kunsthalle: p33, 216, Düchting: p58.
  26. ^ Art into fashion: p102
  27. ^ Düchting: p60, p91, Kunsthalle: p218, Baron/Damase: p93, p100
  28. ^ rue Saint-Simon 16, Paris: 48°51′21.02″N 2°19′24.66″E / 48.8558389°N 2.3235167°E / 48.8558389; 2.3235167
  29. ^ Baron/Damase: p102
  30. ^ Düchting: p71
  31. ^ Journal des Arts
  32. ^ Press release Centre Pompidou: "The exhibition comprises some ninety works by Robert and Sonia Delaunay, chosen from the donation which itself totals one hundred and fourteen paintings, drawings, bound books, reliefs and mosaics."
  33. ^ Baron/Damase: p170
  34. ^ Baron/Damase: p194. Rythmes-Couleurs is an artist's book in a limited edition of 120 copies.
  35. ^ Kunsthalle: p221. Robes Poèmes is an artists's book in a limited edition of 500 copies.
  36. ^ Sonia Delaunay, Jacques Damase, Patrick Raynaud (1978): Nous irons jusqu'au soleil, Editions Robert Laffont, ISBN 2221000633
  37. ^ Baron/Damase: p201

Sources

  • Baron, Stanley; Damase, Jacques (1995). Sonia Delaunay: The Life of an Artist. Harry N. Abrahams. ISBN 0-8109-3222-9.
  • Baron, Stanley; Damase, Jacques (1995). Sonia Delaunay : the life of an artist. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0500237034.
  • Delaunay, Robert; Delaunay, Sonia (1978). Arthur A. Cohen (ed.). The New Art of Color. The Viking Press. ISBN 0670506362.
  • Düchting, Hajo (1995). Delaunay. Taschen. ISBN 3-8228-9191-6.
  • Grosenick, Uta (2001). Women Artists in the 20th and 21st Century. Taschen. ISBN 3822858544.
  • Robert Delaunay - Sonia Delaunay: Das Centre Pompidou zu Gast in Hamburg. Hamburger Kunsthalle. 1999. ISBN 3770152166.
  • Delaunay, Sonia; Morano, Elizabeth; Vreeland, Diana (1986). Sonia Delaunay: art into fashion. G. Braziller. ISBN 0807611123.
  • Chadwick, Whitney; True Latimer, Tirza (2003). The Modern Woman Revisited: Paris Between the Wars. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-0813532929.
  • Delaunay, Sonia; Damase, Jacques (1966). Rythmes-Couleurs. Galerie Motte. OCLC 460063028.
  • d'Orgeval, Domitille (2003-11-07). "L'histoire du Salon des réalités nouvelles de 1946 à 1956" (PDF). Le Journal des Arts. Retrieved 2010-04-19.
  • "Robert et Sonia Delaunay, Donation Sonia et Charles Delaunay" (PDF). Centre Pompidou. 2003-10-01. Retrieved 2010-04-19.

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