Martigues in the Sunlight

Mediums: oil, canvas.
Location: private collection.

Studying in Paris, the artist traveled a lot in France; in particular, she painted from life in the seaside town of Martigues in the Provence region. The plot telling about the life of citizens is made in a bright Fauvist manner, as evidenced by the conventionality in the depiction of figures and objects. They are so sketchy that the characters have no facial features – they are just spots of colour. Clothes and architecture are depicted in the same local semi-cubic forms with clear black contours. However, at the same time, the viewer sees the movement of sellers and their customers, hears the noise of the bazaar. This impression is mostly made by two men talking and gesturing in the foreground of the work.