Observer

By Elisa Carollo.

New York gallery Nahmad Contemporary will dedicate a booth to the visionarily poetic work of French painter Raoul Dufy with a solo presentation of paintings and works on paper made between 1920 and 1948 at the height of his career. Emerging alongside other famous French painters in the early 20th Century, Dufy formulated his personal visual language starting from a blend of Expressionism and Impressionism absorbed in the Parisian art scene of that time. His unique “couleur-lumière” approach combined the bold and vivid colors and almost furious brushstrokes of the Fauves with the poetry of the moment and the delicacy of touch of the Impressionists in swaths of paint that captured the light. Dufy’s work often depicted lively scenes of coastal life, sailing and fashionable society, capturing the essence of modern life with a distinctive flair. The artist was heavily involved in the development of a new aesthetic in Paris during the Age d’Or, collaborating with the renowned fashion designer Paul Poiret in the 1910s, which deeply influenced his contributions to design, textiles, ceramics and murals. He is perhaps not well-known or exhibited enough in the U.S. despite his work being in the collections of MoMA, the Guggenheim, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago, and this booth will provide a great opportunity to learn more about his multifaceted body of work and his contributions to modern art.

Independent 20th Century runs from September 5 through 8 at Cipriani South Street in New York.