Section d'Or

Section d’Or, ( French: “Golden Section”) Paris-based association of Cubist painters; the group was active from 1912 to about 1914.

The group’s name was suggested by the painter Jacques Villon, who had developed an interest in the significance of mathematical proportions such as the ancient concept of the golden section, the section d’or. The name thus reflects the Cubist artists’ concern with geometric forms, although Villon and Juan Gris were the only Cubists who directly applied such concepts to their work. The principal members of the group were Robert Delaunay, Marcel Duchamp, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, Albert Gleizes, Juan Gris, Roger de La Fresnaye, Fernand Léger, André Lhote, Louis Marcoussis, Jean Metzinger, Francis Picabia, and André Dunoyer de Segonzac.

Roger de La Fresnaye

Artillery, 1911

Painted three years before the outbreak of World War I, the subject of this painting appears prophetic. La Fresnaye could often have observed similar military reviews near Les Invalides in Paris. Artillery officers on white and brown horses accompany a caisson (ammunition wagon for moving artillery) that transports a field gun and three soldiers in helmets. In the background a military music band approaches, wearing the blue and red uniforms of the infantry. Although Artillery represents an imaginary scene, La Fresnaye, as the son of a military officer, paid close attention to the various uniforms. Forms are reduced to their utmost simplicity and geometric core, while the color scheme—taking its cue from the tricolore held aloft—is composed of red, white, and blue, along with earthen tones. Painted in 1911, the year he became associated with Cubism and joined the Section d'Or group, Artillery demonstrates the artist's ever greater emphasis on the solid geometry that underlies all forms in nature.

References:

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/531974/Section-dOr

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1991.397