Sonia Delaunay: Portugaise assise (1915-16)

“The artist’s main purpose in Portugaise assise is not simply to represent a local woman, at her work, but to study light – the particularly warm and clear light of northern Portugal, which Delaunay has divided and recomposed into a riotous cacophony of colour and movement that immerses the viewer in the raucous, sensual atmosphere of the sun-drenched Portuguese marketplace.

In Portugaise assise, the artist places abstract moving coloured discs around the sitter, generating movement and depth to create spaces and enhance the dynamic arrangement of colour. The overall tone is warm, with reds, oranges and yellows. The greens and blues are loaded with yellow and there is an interplay of…