100 WOMEN ARTISTS: Now and Then is a project spearheaded by Alicia Campos Masso. The exhibition at the Dunedin Fine Art Center will run from June 8 to September 1, 2024. There will be 100 contemporary women artists participating. I am honored to be part of this project.
The objective is to promote female artists in art history and their stories as well as at the same time promote contemporary female artists. Each participating artist has chosen a specific woman artist's artwork which she can recreate however she choses.
EXHIBITION: June 7 to September 1, 2024
MY SELECTION
I chose Sonia Delaunay because I came across her work while I was an international art dealer. Primarily, I bought and sold her works on paper which were related to her textile and fashion work. Needless to say, I have always had an affinity for her artwork. From current research covering the breadth of her long and prolific career, I settled on the painting, “Rythme coloré” dating 1946, oil on canvas, 69” x 59”.
STUDY of Sonia Delaunay's Composition
Fascinated by her composition, I had a choice to make. Do I make this a learning experience about Sonia Delaunay’s painting or do I create something totally my own based on on it? I chose to study the work and put a personal stamp into it. Therefore, I created an analysis of her composition to better understand her usage of diagonals and overlapping circles within circles within circles which continue as implied.
I should mention that Sonia Delaunay was a proponent in the early 20th century development of Simultanism. It was all about modern technology and cultural happenings influencing the usage of composition and color to create movement, rhythm and space.
COLOR CHART
The next step was to figure out how to use the Prismacolors to match Sonia Delaunay’s which were somewhat flat with slight transitions. What I learned in this exercise was that I would need to layer different colors twice and in some cases three times to get the desired result. I always do a color chart for my own artworks which I have found to be a helpful practice.
PROGRESSION of the Drawing
This is how my approached my drawing which is 17” x 14”. I chose to tighten up Sonia Delaunay’s composition and to stay within her color choices as best as I could with my method of applying Prismacolors. To change the surface texture and personalize it, I chose to gradate some of the hues. At the very end, I would insert a few more personal touches into the composition. Below you will be able to see the underdrawing and the progression of color additions.
Follow the progress from left to right. Click on the image to enlarge it.
ONE MORE COLOR and the Personal Touch
The personal touches include subtle changes to the original composition. Can you find them in the final image of the drawing? Two hints: look at the circles and how the color is applied.
Links to learn more about Sonia Delaunay and Simultanism
https://ukrainianjewishencounter.org/en/sonia-delaunay-1885-1979/
https://www.tate.org.uk/tate-etc/issue-34-summer-2015/multi-talented-delaunay
https://www.kooness.com/posts/magazine/about-sonia-delaunay
https://www.gdcinteriors.com/sonia-delaunay/
https://itsveryyou.wordpress.com/2017/08/05/sonia-delaunay-stylish-simultanism/