.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
拍品专文
The modern dancer, caught up in the rhythm of the latest fashionable routine, became the central focus of Gino Severini’s work following his move to Paris in the opening decade of the twentieth century. Dazzled by the feverish energy and fast pace of the buzzing metropolis, the young Italian came to associate dynamism not only with the innovations of modern machines and new technology, but also the pulsating, magnetic energy of the modern city. In particular, Severini believed that the vitalistic frenzy that emerged at night in the bars, dancehalls, and cabarets of Paris perfectly encapsulated the modern experience, as professional and amateur dancers alike crowded into the most popular nightspots to perform the latest popular routine. This glittering and engulfing atmosphere, with its riotous mix of movement, rhythm and noise, captured the artist’s imagination instantly, and—thanks to his own dancing talent—he quickly became a frequent visitor to the most thrilling nightclubs in Paris. In his autobiography, the artist described the heady environment of these nocturnal revelries, recalling: “they were carnivalesque parties with carriages full of beautiful masked and undressed women, with showers of confetti, multi-colored streamers, etc. The atmosphere was one of total frenzy, undoubtedly animated by quantities of champagne” (The Life of a Painter, trans. J. Franchina, Princeton, 1995, p. 54).
Focusing his attention on the figures that surrounded him on his nightly escapades, Severini began a series of compositions focusing on the dynamic movements of various forms of dance, in an effort to capture a sense of the heady joie de vivre that underpinned his experiences in the French capital. As the artist explained, his aim was to capture an impression of being in these dancehalls and nightclubs: “A picture will no longer be the faithful reproduction of a scene, enclosed in a window frame, but the realization of a complex view of life or things that live in space…” (quoted in S. Fraquelli, Gino Severini: From Futurism to Classicism, exh. cat., The Estorick Collection, London, 2000, p. 5). Like his Futurist colleagues, he sought to capture the very sensation of this movement in his paintings, employing complex shifting viewpoints, fragmented forms, and intricate networks of lines to convey the speed and power of the human body in motion.
Painted over the winter of 1915-1916, Danseuse is an elegant summation of Severini’s evolving aesthetic at this time, as he began to experiment with a radical fusion of Futurist and Cubist idioms. Stepping away from the complete dissolution of form which had marked his most recent abstractions, Severini places the figure once again at the center of the composition, building the dancer’s form in a series of interlocking, semi-abstract planes of subtly modulated color. The effusive, bright palette enlivens the entire picture surface, and captures a sense of the energy that emanates from the dancer during her performance. Severini wanted his colors “to be diamonds and to be able to make abundant use of them in my pictures so as to make them gleam with light and richness” (quoted in D. Fonti, Gino Severini: The Dance 1909-1916, exh. cat., The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, 2001, p. 15). Here, the vibrant tones are complemented by a new sense of pattern and texture, most notably in the inclusion of the floral design of the woman’s dress, and the addition of small sequins to the center of the canvas in a sinuous, looping pattern.
Danseuse was among a group of recent works Severini selected for exhibition at Alfred Stieglitz’s gallery 291 in New York in March 1917. According to the artist, it was the Mexican-born artist Marius de Zayas who had organized the show, having met Severini in Paris the previous year, and facilitated the transport of the artist’s work across the Atlantic. The exhibition proved a huge success, with Severini recalling in his autobiography: “We were quite glad when some good news arrived at our house and was brought to the studio by Jeanne. It was the ‘non plus ultra’ of good news: a letter from America with an important cheque enclosed. The letter was translated by my neighbor, an American painter, and we learned that almost all of my show at Stieglitz’ gallery in New York had been sold and that soon another remittance would be on its way to me” (op. cit., 1995, p. 178).
Danseuse was purchased from Stieglitz on 10 April 1917 by one of the leading collectors and promoters of modern art in America during the opening decades of the twentieth century, John Quinn, who by the 1920s owned the single largest collection of modern European paintings in the world. Through his vehement opposition to the censorship of modern art and literature, as well as his support of the 1913 Armory Show in New York, Quinn was responsible for introducing American audiences to some of the most important artists and movements of the twentieth century. The painting subsequently entered the collection of Arthur B. Spingarn, a fellow New York lawyer and key figure in the fight for civil rights for African Americans. Influenced by the injustice he witnessed while working on a civil liberties case during the early years of his career, Spingarn took up the role of chairman of the NAACP's Legal Committee in 1911, and remained heavily involved in the organization for over half a century, guiding and directing its tireless fight for equality through the courts. A collector of rare books and prints, Spingarn purchased Danseuse, as well as Raymond Duchamp-Villon’s Seated Woman, from Quinn’s estate sale in 1927.
Focusing his attention on the figures that surrounded him on his nightly escapades, Severini began a series of compositions focusing on the dynamic movements of various forms of dance, in an effort to capture a sense of the heady joie de vivre that underpinned his experiences in the French capital. As the artist explained, his aim was to capture an impression of being in these dancehalls and nightclubs: “A picture will no longer be the faithful reproduction of a scene, enclosed in a window frame, but the realization of a complex view of life or things that live in space…” (quoted in S. Fraquelli, Gino Severini: From Futurism to Classicism, exh. cat., The Estorick Collection, London, 2000, p. 5). Like his Futurist colleagues, he sought to capture the very sensation of this movement in his paintings, employing complex shifting viewpoints, fragmented forms, and intricate networks of lines to convey the speed and power of the human body in motion.
Painted over the winter of 1915-1916, Danseuse is an elegant summation of Severini’s evolving aesthetic at this time, as he began to experiment with a radical fusion of Futurist and Cubist idioms. Stepping away from the complete dissolution of form which had marked his most recent abstractions, Severini places the figure once again at the center of the composition, building the dancer’s form in a series of interlocking, semi-abstract planes of subtly modulated color. The effusive, bright palette enlivens the entire picture surface, and captures a sense of the energy that emanates from the dancer during her performance. Severini wanted his colors “to be diamonds and to be able to make abundant use of them in my pictures so as to make them gleam with light and richness” (quoted in D. Fonti, Gino Severini: The Dance 1909-1916, exh. cat., The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, 2001, p. 15). Here, the vibrant tones are complemented by a new sense of pattern and texture, most notably in the inclusion of the floral design of the woman’s dress, and the addition of small sequins to the center of the canvas in a sinuous, looping pattern.
Danseuse was among a group of recent works Severini selected for exhibition at Alfred Stieglitz’s gallery 291 in New York in March 1917. According to the artist, it was the Mexican-born artist Marius de Zayas who had organized the show, having met Severini in Paris the previous year, and facilitated the transport of the artist’s work across the Atlantic. The exhibition proved a huge success, with Severini recalling in his autobiography: “We were quite glad when some good news arrived at our house and was brought to the studio by Jeanne. It was the ‘non plus ultra’ of good news: a letter from America with an important cheque enclosed. The letter was translated by my neighbor, an American painter, and we learned that almost all of my show at Stieglitz’ gallery in New York had been sold and that soon another remittance would be on its way to me” (op. cit., 1995, p. 178).
Danseuse was purchased from Stieglitz on 10 April 1917 by one of the leading collectors and promoters of modern art in America during the opening decades of the twentieth century, John Quinn, who by the 1920s owned the single largest collection of modern European paintings in the world. Through his vehement opposition to the censorship of modern art and literature, as well as his support of the 1913 Armory Show in New York, Quinn was responsible for introducing American audiences to some of the most important artists and movements of the twentieth century. The painting subsequently entered the collection of Arthur B. Spingarn, a fellow New York lawyer and key figure in the fight for civil rights for African Americans. Influenced by the injustice he witnessed while working on a civil liberties case during the early years of his career, Spingarn took up the role of chairman of the NAACP's Legal Committee in 1911, and remained heavily involved in the organization for over half a century, guiding and directing its tireless fight for equality through the courts. A collector of rare books and prints, Spingarn purchased Danseuse, as well as Raymond Duchamp-Villon’s Seated Woman, from Quinn’s estate sale in 1927.