Sonia Delaunay was one of the most innovative and experimental artists of the 20th century - and one of the most important pioneers of abstraction.
"Rythme couleur" embodies the concept of Simultanism (Orphism) that she and Robert Delaunay developed in the mid-1910s. Through the bold, imaginative use of colour and the use of simple geometric shapes - circle, square, rectangle and triangle - she was able to suggest different levels of depth and movement in her paintings.
Jacques Damase (1930-2014) was a French publisher, gallery owner and curator who took care of Sonia Delaunay's work during the last 15 years of her life. He published numerous albums, monographs and editions of engravings and lithographs.
In 1966, Damase published the illustrated book "Rythmes-Couleurs" about the life and work of Sonia Delaunay. The book, with a text by Damase, contains 11 gouaches on paper reproduced as pochoirs.
As curator, he organised several exhibitions, including the first exhibition of English Pop Art in Geneva. Damase also ran an art gallery in Paris (Galerie de Varenne) and in Brussels, where he exhibited works by Le Corbusier, Jim Dine, Jean Cocteau and Hans Arp.
