Robert Delaunay

(French, 1885–1941)

Robert Delaunay was a French artist best known for his vibratory paintings of modern life. Interested in conveying a sense of dynamism in his work, Delaunay often chose icons of human progress as motifs for his paintings. “Without visual perception there is no light, no movement,” he once explained. “This movement is provided by relationships of uneven measures, by color contrasts, which constitute reality.” Born on April 12, 1885 in Paris, France, he grew up in an affluent family and apprenticed a theater designer as a youth. Meeting Henri Rousseau in 1903 compelled the young Delaunay to pursue a career in the arts, and he quickly became a fixture in the Parisian avant-garde, alongside Jean Metzinger, Fernand Léger, and Wassily Kandinsky. In 1912, his friend the poet Guillaume Apollinaire, coined the term Orphism to describe Delaunay’s and his wife Sonia Delaunay’s work. Apollinaire repurposed the word which was originally used to describe a mystic sect of ancient Greece that worshiped Orpheus, the lyre-playing poet of Greek mythology. The artist and his wife survived World War I unscathed, despite financial hardships. During the later stages of his career, the artist’s work became increasingly abstract, often consisting only of concentric circles of different hues. Delaunay died on October 25, 1941 in Montpelier, France. Today, his works are held in the collections of the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the Tate Gallery in London, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Kunstmuseum Basel, among others.

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Robert Delaunay Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Robert Delaunay (632 results)
Etude pour La Grand Portugaise, 1915

Robert Delaunay

Etude pour La Grand Portugaise, 1915

Sale Date: June 28, 2017

Auction Closed

Ville de Paris, 1912

Robert Delaunay

Ville de Paris, 1912

Sale Date: May 18, 2017

Auction Closed

Bretonne, Ecarteuse de Goëmon, 1906

Robert Delaunay

Bretonne, Ecarteuse de Goëmon, 1906

Sale Date: May 16, 2017

Auction Closed

MARCHÉ BRETON, 1905

Robert Delaunay

MARCHÉ BRETON, 1905

Sale Date: May 17, 2017

Auction Closed

LA VILLE DE PARIS, ESQUISSE, 1911

Robert Delaunay

LA VILLE DE PARIS, ESQUISSE, 1911

Sale Date: May 17, 2017

Auction Closed

Femme à l’ombrelle ou La Parisienne, 1913

Robert Delaunay

Femme à l’ombrelle ou La Parisienne, 1913

Sale Date: May 15, 2017

Auction Closed

Etude pour la facade latérale du..., 1936–1937

Robert Delaunay and Félix Aublet

Etude pour la facade latérale du..., 1936–1937

Sale Date: April 5, 2017

Auction Closed

SAINT SEVERIN, 1923–1925

Robert Delaunay

SAINT SEVERIN, 1923–1925

Sale Date: April 6, 2017

Auction Closed

Projet pour la Cour des Coutainers (Palais..., 1973

Robert Delaunay

Projet pour la Cour des Coutainers (Palais..., 1973

Sale Date: February 26, 2017

Auction Closed

Manège de Cochons, 1905–1918

Robert Delaunay

Manège de Cochons, 1905–1918

Sale Date: March 1, 2017

Auction Closed

RELIEF NOIR AVEC DES CERCLES DE COULEUR, 1930–1932

Robert Delaunay

RELIEF NOIR AVEC DES CERCLES DE COULEUR, 1930–1932

Sale Date: March 2, 2017

Auction Closed

Hommage à Blériot, esquisse, 1914

Robert Delaunay

Hommage à Blériot, esquisse, 1914

Sale Date: November 16, 2016

Auction Closed

NATURE MORTE PORTUGAISE, 1916

Robert Delaunay

NATURE MORTE PORTUGAISE, 1916

Sale Date: November 15, 2016

Auction Closed

Rythme

Robert Delaunay

Rythme

Sale Date: October 17, 2016

Auction Closed

Composition horizontale, 1975

Sonia Delaunay-Terk and Robert Delaunay

Composition horizontale, 1975

Sale Date: October 7, 2016

Auction Closed

Saint-Severin, 1960

After Robert Delaunay

Saint-Severin, 1960

Sale Date: September 22, 2016

Auction Closed

Vue Aérienne de la Tour, 1960

After Robert Delaunay

Vue Aérienne de la Tour, 1960

Sale Date: September 22, 2016

Auction Closed

Composition, 1957

Sonia Delaunay-Terk and Robert Delaunay

Composition, 1957

Sale Date: July 31, 2016

Auction Closed

La Fenêtre sur la ville, 1925

Robert Delaunay

La Fenêtre sur la ville, 1925

Sale Date: June 16, 2016

Auction Closed

VERSEUSE. ÉTUDE, 1915

Robert Delaunay

VERSEUSE. ÉTUDE, 1915

Sale Date: June 1, 2016

Auction Closed

ARLEQUIN, 1983

After Sonia Delaunay-Terk and Robert Delaunay

ARLEQUIN, 1983

Sale Date: May 30, 2016

Auction Closed

Les jouets portuguais

Sonia Delaunay-Terk and Robert Delaunay

Les jouets portuguais

Sale Date: June 7, 2016

Auction Closed

La femme au pain, 1906

Robert Delaunay

La femme au pain, 1906

Sale Date: March 31, 2016

Auction Closed

La Tour, 1960

After Robert Delaunay

La Tour, 1960

Sale Date: March 8, 2016

Auction Closed

English (US)

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