John Ormsby (20th Century), Large 1966 Abstract Cubist Oil on Canvas

Lot description

John Ormsby (20th Century), Large 1966 Abstract Cubist Oil on Canvas. A mix of stark primary colors and black to create an image. Signed and dated 1966 on the back. Condition: Commensurate with age. Size: 48 1/2 x 36 1/2 x 1 3/4 in. Cubism is an early 20th Century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broken up, and reassembled in an abstract form. Instead of depicting objects from a single perspective, the artist depicts the subject from multiple perspectives to represent the subject in a greater context. The movement was pioneered in partnership by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, and joined by Jean Metzinger, Albert Gleizes, Robert Delaunay, Henri Le Fauconnier, Juan Gris, and Fernand Léger. One primary influence that led to Cubism was the representation of three-dimensional form in the late works of Paul Cézanne. In France, offshoots of Cubism developed, including Orphism, abstract art and later Purism. The impact of Cubism was far-reaching and wide-ranging in the arts and in popular culture, introducing collage as a modern art form and heavily influencing Futurism, Suprematism, Dada, Constructivism, De Stijl, and Art Deco movements. Common threads between these disparate movements include the faceting or simplification of geometric forms, and the association of mechanization and modern life, and are often reflective of the period (or periods of Cubism they are most influenced by: Analytical Cubism (1909 to 1912), Synthetic or Crystal Cubism (1912 to roughly 1919), and Late Cubism (overlapping somewhat and lasting from roughly 1914 to 1921). Despite this brief timeframe into which most of the innovations in Cubism are assigned the style continues to exist and be produced into the 21st Century, and many budding artists are drawn to it during their early explorations of art styles and techniques, with modern collectors seeking out both old and new pieces alike.