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French artist Robert Delaunay painted this portrait of his fellow artist Jean Metzinger in 1906, before either had fully developed the abstract styles they would become known for. Metzinger wears a bowler hat and holds a cigarette, his face rendered in the broken color technique of Neo-Impressionism.
The painting shows Delaunay's early Divisionist period, when he applied color in separate dabs following theories about how the eye mixes hues. The pink, blue, and bright tones give the portrait a vibrant, stylish quality that matches Metzinger's dandy appearance. A tulip in the composition adds a decorative flourish and gives the work its common title.
Metzinger would become an important Cubist painter and theorist, working alongside Picasso, Braque, and eventually Delaunay himself. This early portrait captures him before that transformation, as a young artist in the Parisian avant-garde. The canvas measures 72.39 x 48.58 cm and remains in a private collection. Delaunay later pioneered Orphism, emphasizing pure color and circular forms, but this portrait shows his Neo-Impressionist foundation.

Robert Delaunay
Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe

Robert Delaunay
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York

Robert Delaunay
Kunstmuseum Basel, Basel

Robert Delaunay
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
Works that share an artist, movement, museum, genre, palette or theme with Man with a Tulip (also known as Portrait of Jean Metzinger).

Robert Delaunay

Robert Delaunay

Robert Delaunay

Juan Gris

Juan Gris

Juan Gris

Fernand Léger

Fernand Léger

Fernand Léger
Pablo Picasso, 1906

Pablo Picasso, 1905

Pablo Picasso, 1905
Luxury wall art with the same mood and energy. Gallery-quality canvas, no museum crowds.
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