Montjoie - Sonia Delaunay
Archival giclée
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Description
A 1913 abstract composition by Sonia Delaunay, featuring rhythmic colour segments and integrated typography in the Orphist style.
Montjoie, painted by Sonia Delaunay in 1913, represents a significant moment in the development of Orphism. This movement, a term coined by Guillaume Apollinaire, focused on the lyrical use of colour and geometric form to evoke musicality and rhythm. Delaunay applied these principles to the design of the journal cover for Montjoie!, a publication founded by Ricciotto Canudo. The work demonstrates her interest in the interaction of contrasting hues and the integration of typography into abstract composition.
The painting features a curved, fan-like structure set against a warm, ochre-yellow background. Within this shape, Delaunay arranges segments of colour that follow the curvature of the form. The letters of the title are integrated directly into the design, appearing as part of the rhythmic structure rather than as separate elements. The application of paint is visible, showing the texture of the brushwork across the surface. By breaking down the visual field into distinct zones of colour, Delaunay creates a sense of movement that aligns with the avant-garde spirit of early twentieth-century Paris.
This piece reflects the artist's broader practice of blurring the lines between fine art and graphic design. Her approach to colour theory, influenced by the work of Michel Eugène Chevreul, relies on the simultaneous contrast of adjacent colours to create optical energy. The composition avoids traditional perspective, opting instead for a flat, decorative arrangement that prioritises the relationship between shape and tone. As a study in modern abstraction, the work captures the energy of the period, where the boundaries of artistic expression were being redefined through the lens of light, rhythm, and colour.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
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Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
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- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
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Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Montjoie - Sonia Delaunay
Artist Biography
Sonia Delaunay
She was born Sara Stern in 1885 in Hradyzk, Ukraine. At five, her wealthy uncle Henri Terk adopted her and took her to St Petersburg. She grew up with access to art collections, European travel, and a good education. She studied in Karlsruhe, moved to Paris in 1905, and absorbed the Fauvists and Post-Impressionists. After meeting Robert, they developed what Guillaume Apollinaire named Orphism: a variant of Cubism built on pure colour, geometric abstraction, and dynamic movement. Their shared foundation was Chevreul's colour theory of simultaneous contrast, where adjacent colours alter each other's appearance.
In 1913, she sewed the simultaneous dress by hand from scraps of men's tailoring cloth, velvet, silk, and fur. It was designed to match the energy of the foxtrot and tango at Le Bal Bullier, a popular Parisian dance hall. Apollinaire urged readers to visit the Bal Bullier on Thursdays when the Delaunays arrived wearing her creations. The same year, she collaborated with Blaise Cendrars on La Prose du Transsiberien, a two-metre vertical fold-out combining his poem with her abstract colour panels. It is described as the first complete fusion of poetry and painting.
She treated painting, textiles, and fashion as a single practice. She set up a studio in their apartment, opened a fashion house called Sonia, and had her textile line picked up by one of Europe's biggest fabric manufacturers. In 1964, she became the first living woman to have a retrospective at the Louvre. She was seventy-nine. She died in 1979, aged ninety-four.
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