Artwork
Windows
Windows is an oil painting by Robert Delaunay. It dates from 1912 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
“Windows” is an oil on canvas executed by French painter Robert Delaunay in 1912. The work measures a modest size and exemplifies the artist’s early exploration of color and form. It is part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, where it is displayed among other early 20th‑century modernist works.
Technique & Style
In this piece Delaunay applies oil paint in broad, luminous planes that suggest the fragmented view through a window. The composition emphasizes the interaction of light and color rather than detailed representation, anticipating the abstract tendencies that would later define his Orphic Cubism. The brushwork is relatively loose, allowing the pigments to blend optically.
History & Provenance
Created during a period of rapid artistic experimentation, “Windows” entered the Museum of Modern Art’s collection through a mid‑20th‑century acquisition program focused on early modernist paintings. The museum’s records indicate the work has remained in its holdings since the purchase, providing scholars with a stable reference point for Delaunay’s pre‑Orphic output.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Robert Delaunay was a French artist of the School of Paris movement; who, with his wife Sonia Delaunay and others, co-founded the Orphism art movement, noted for its use of strong colours and geometric shapes.
