Orphism

オルフィスム / 1912–1914 / Style / Geometric Abstraction

An abstraction that returned colour and movement to Cubist fragmentation, painting light itself through rings of simultaneous contrast. Rotating discs and a refracted spectrum generate time and vibration within a static surface. One of the first practices to translate the theory of simultaneous colour contrast into form.

Orphism — Robert Delaunay, Simultaneous Windows on the City, 1912 — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Robert Delaunay, Simultaneous Windows on the City, 1912 — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Orphism — Robert Delaunay, Simultaneous Disc — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Robert Delaunay, Simultaneous Disc — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

At a glance

Visual cues

Concentric circles and rotating discs
Hues arranged in spectral order
Divisions made by intersecting arcs
Simultaneous contrast of colour

Best used for

Turning the spread of sound or light into a figure that stays on a still surface
Decorative panels and drapes on rotation and cycle, set moving by colour alone

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Dictionary entry

Type: A rounded geometric sans used sparingly, letters following the arcs with shifting density
Composition: Concentric and interlocking discs sliced by arcs radiating from off centre pivots
Material: Spectrum ordered hues in flat even segments, with little lightness difference between neighbours
Caution: Avoid letting the discs decay into generic rainbow ornament; the arcs must follow simultaneous-contrast logic, each hue chosen against its neighbour.
Further study: Chevreul's law of simultaneous contrast / The division of roles between Robert and Sonia Delaunay / The history of the term 'simultaneity'

Related entries

Cubism (キュビスム)Shared effects: Technique.Compare Orphism and Cubism
Suprematism (シュプレマティスム)Same Geometric Abstraction lineage.Compare Orphism and Suprematism

Often confused with

Synchromism (シンクロミズム)compare

Cite this entry

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