La Danse thumbnail 1
La Danse thumbnail 2
Not on display

La Danse

Furnishing Fabric
ca. 1920 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Raoul Dufy (1877-1953) designed this furnishing fabric called ‘La Danse’ for Bianchini-Férier about 1920. It is made of woodblock printed cretonne. Dufy was a painter who had exhibited with the Fauves. He began to design textiles for Paul Poiret in 1911. From 1912 until 1930 he designed woven and printed textiles for the silk manufacturers Bianchini-Férier. He created a range of lively fabrics in bright colours, many of which were bought by leading couturiers such as Lanvin, Patou and Poiret.

‘La Danse’ is part of the ‘Toiles de Tournon’ series, which was made at the Bianchini-Férier factory at Tournon, near Lyon, in the early 1920s. The title of the series reflects Dufy’s aspiration to produce a modern day furnishing fabric in the same vein as Oberkampf’s 18th century toiles de Jouy. These often depicted groups of people interspersed with vegetation. Dufy’s design is also reminiscent of popular prints. Areas of colour are skilfully balanced against a plain background to achieve dynamic repeats in an ostensibly rough-hewn manner. Shortly before Poiret employed him, Dufy had produced woodcuts to illustrate the poet Apollinaire’s volume Le Bestiaire ou Cortège d’Orphée.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleLa Danse (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Woodblock printed cretonne
Brief description
Furnishing fabric 'La Danse' of woodblock printed cretonne, designed by Raoul Dufy for Bianchini-Férier, France, ca. 1920
Physical description
Furnishing fabric of woodblock printed cretonne. A sailor dances with a woman wearing earrings and a head scarf, and they accompanied by a man on an accordion. In the background is a ship on the ocean. The figures are surrounded by tropical palms. The design is printed in navy on white.
Dimensions
  • Height: 1700mm (Note: Display footprint (as mounted).)
  • Width: 650mm (Note: Display footprint (as mounted).)
  • Depth: 600mm (Note: Display footprint (as mounted).)
  • Circumference of hat circumference: 56.6cm
  • Length of hat from base to point but it was not worn stiffly pointed length: 55cm
  • Width of blanck and white brim of hat width: 10.6cm
Style
Gallery label
This is a simplified version of a multicoloured painted and printed panel made for Paul Poiret in about 1910. It combines South Sea Islands' exoticism with the pastoral vocabulary of the famous Toiles de Jouy, the printed cottons manufactured near Paris in the later 18th century.
Object history
See MISC.2-25-1934 for a black on white version of the same design.
Summary
Raoul Dufy (1877-1953) designed this furnishing fabric called ‘La Danse’ for Bianchini-Férier about 1920. It is made of woodblock printed cretonne. Dufy was a painter who had exhibited with the Fauves. He began to design textiles for Paul Poiret in 1911. From 1912 until 1930 he designed woven and printed textiles for the silk manufacturers Bianchini-Férier. He created a range of lively fabrics in bright colours, many of which were bought by leading couturiers such as Lanvin, Patou and Poiret.

‘La Danse’ is part of the ‘Toiles de Tournon’ series, which was made at the Bianchini-Férier factory at Tournon, near Lyon, in the early 1920s. The title of the series reflects Dufy’s aspiration to produce a modern day furnishing fabric in the same vein as Oberkampf’s 18th century toiles de Jouy. These often depicted groups of people interspersed with vegetation. Dufy’s design is also reminiscent of popular prints. Areas of colour are skilfully balanced against a plain background to achieve dynamic repeats in an ostensibly rough-hewn manner. Shortly before Poiret employed him, Dufy had produced woodcuts to illustrate the poet Apollinaire’s volume Le Bestiaire ou Cortège d’Orphée.
Bibliographic reference
Samuels, Charlotte. Art Deco Textiles. London : V&A Publications, 2003. Plate 11.
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.113-1939

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Record createdAugust 8, 2002
Record URL
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