Sophie Taeuber-Arp

1. Sophie Taeuber-Arp
Artist and Designer (1889-1943)
By: Hamza Gheith

2. summery
● Taeuber-Arp worked as a designer,
teacher, puppeteer, architect,
painter, interior designer, sculptor,
performer, jeweler, illustrator, and
magazine editor throughout her life.
She realized a goal to make the
things we possess more lovely
through her meticulous but fun
artistry.

3. About the artist
● Sophie Taeuber
● Born: Sophie Henriette Gertrud Taeuber was born in
Davos-Platz, Switzerland, on the 19th of January 1889
● Before returning to Switzerland after the First World War, she
attended a vocational school in St. Gallen and later art institutions
in Germany.
● Sophie Taeuber-art Arp's gained widespread acclaim only after
WWII, and her work is now widely regarded as among the best in
the field of classical modernism. The display of her art at
documenta 1 in 1955 was a significant turning point in her career.
● Taeuber was also a dancer, usually appearing in costumes
devised by her husband at the Dada hotspot Cabaret Voltaire.

4. Introduction of the exhibit…
● Unique tapestries that were richly colored, the arts grew exponentially from
collages to watercolors, stage sets, and pillowcases.
● The puppet play “King Stag” was made out of wood, and the marionettes of
the faces were like oceanic masks; all of the puppets were in different
patterns which were made in 1918.
● Her portrait designs were made turned wood and rich colors that made the
portraits look naturalistic.
● Her arts started to grow into the architectural point of view, where she added
arcs, curves, and colors that made her grid appear directional.

5. 1930s
● Taeuber-Arp explored innovative design that created
tension by playing the form and color of one other and
integrating opposites to portray total harmony.
● This piece exemplifies the Constructivist mode's
aspiration for purity, which sought the absolute and
non-human through geometric shapes which developed
into her future paintings.
● A sequence of opposing composition choices are
balanced by the complicated interaction of actual colors:
black and white, round and square, red and blue.
● Far from being static, these shapes hover and interact in
a dynamic equilibrium. This painting demonstrates how
Taeuber-Arp worked in both traditional and nontraditional
art mediums and how she used compositional elements
from applied arts to painting, such as the
vertical-horizontal application of the grid.

6. 1930s continued…
● Here, Taeuber-Arp has made good use of her lines.
Much blank paper and empty spaces may be found in
these compositions.
● Lines started to form into circles and semi-circles.
● the compositions started to be more tense and big
● The contrast of the lines started to form into geometrical
shapes.
● The bigger space of the painting made it easier to draw
more shapes.
● Rough lines made it easier to follow and design a
structure of the painting that is structured better.

7. 1940s
“I think I have spoken enough to you about serious things; which is why I
speak now of something to which I attribute great value, still too little
appreciated gaiety. It is gaiety, basically, that allows us to have no fear
before the problems of life and to find a natural solution to them“ (Sophie
Taeuber-Arp).

8. Taeuber Came to an end in 1940s
● Her legacy of art and craft continues till today
● Prior to World War II, she continued to impact the
critical discussion of international modernism.
● Fled to France, trying to escape from the attack on
Paris, leaving her to be in south of France
● Couple of years later Tauber had died due to
accidental gas poisoning in Zurich
● These compositions started to grow and evolve into
other artists in her era, which was part of her
legacy.

9. 1940s quote from Taeuber
“I very much enjoyed working on the
drawing, so much so that I made a
whole series of small watercolors that
I can use at any time for application on
embroidered purses, pillows, rugs and
wall hangings.“

10. Museum of Sophie Taeuber
The museum did well at showing how her
legacy traveled and what she had created,
from watercolors, wood puppets, colored
tapestries, and portlets. Her work was
displayed throughout the exhibition to
demonstrate how she developed as an
artist and how talented she was. To this
day, people are following in her footsteps to
be just like her; she has all the skills an
artist can have; she even designed
geometrical art, which made it beautiful to
the eyes.

11. Work Cited
● “Sophie Taeuber-Arp.” Google Arts & Culture,
artsandculture.google.com/story/1QWhoHNhYqZoLw. Accessed 1 June 2022.
● “Sophie Taeuber-Arp Art, Bio, Ideas.” The Art Story,
www.theartstory.org/artist/taeuber-arp-sophie. Accessed 1 June 2022.
● “Sophie Taeuber-Arp | Biography, Art, and Facts.” Encyclopedia Britannica,
www.britannica.com/biography/Sophie-Taeuber-Arp. Accessed 1 June 2022.