Paule Vézelay

Contrasted Forms on Green was created by Paule Vézelay in 1976 and is one of nine limited edition silkscreen prints generously made available by the estate of the artist in support of Tate.

From 1930, Vézelay made abstract paintings which became progressively simple in form. In 1934 she joined the international group ‘Abstraction-Création’ along with such artists as Jean (Hans) Arp, Jean Hélion, Alexander Calder, Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth. Her work was characterised by simple organic forms floating against a flat field, which reflected her interest in the representation of three-dimensional form on a flat surface. She continued to revisit this theme in her 1970s screen prints and throughout her career.

The limited edition of 30 and is signed and numbered by the artist and comes unframed.

• Artist Paule Vézelay
• Artwork Contrasted Forms on Green
• Dimensions 76 x 56 cm
• Material Silkscreen print on paper
• Edition 23 of 30, signed and numbered
• Date of work 1976

Paule Vézelay (b. Bristol, UK, 1892–1984) was a British painter, recognised by some as Britain’s first abstract artist. Born Marjorie Watson-Williams, she grew up in Bristol and trained at the Slade and London School of Art. From 1920 she spent much time in Paris, and settled there in 1926. Her studio was a street away from Picasso’s, and she became part of the group of artists who contributed to the revolution in modern art of the 1920s. During this time, she adopted the name ‘Paule Vézelay’ to obscure both her nationality and gender.

Vézelay’s only major retrospective was at The Tate Gallery (now Tate Britain) in 1983, just a year before her death. For this reason she has become far better known now than she was during her lifetime. Her work is represented in museums and public collections in Britain and abroad, including Tate, the British Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the V&A, the Ashmolean Museum, Kunstmuseum Basel, and the Austrian National Gallery.