Dada Brasilis – Dois morros 2024 – Acrylic on canvas – 100 x 82 cm
Paris, 1924
In the heart of Montparnasse, Sophie Taeuber-Arp, dressed in a striped blouse that echoed her love for precise lines and geometry, entered the café with a quiet confidence. Her short hair framed her face in a way that accentuated her sharp features, and her eyes, always alert, scanned the room for familiar faces. She was meeting her husband, Jean Arp, a key figure in the Dada movement, but as she looked around, something, or rather someone else, caught her attention.
At a corner table, amidst a swirl of cigarette smoke, sat a woman whose presence radiated warmth. Her skin was sun-kissed, her dark hair pulled back elegantly, and her dress, a riot of colors, seemed to breathe life into the muted tones of the café. Sophie found herself drawn to this woman, not just because of her striking appearance, but because of the sketches that lay scattered across the table.
Intrigued, Sophie approached. “May I join you?” she asked, her voice carrying the soft lilt of her Swiss accent.
The woman looked up, her deep brown eyes meeting Sophie’s. She smiled, a gesture that seemed to light up the room. “Of course. I was just capturing a bit of home,” she said, motioning to the sketches.
Sophie sat down, her eyes sweeping over the drawings. They were filled with fluid, organic forms, stylized plants, abstracted figures, and landscapes that seemed to pulse with vibrant energy. “These are remarkable,” Sophie said, her voice tinged with genuine admiration. “There’s a life in them that’s… different from what I’m used to seeing here in Europe.”
The woman laughed softly. “I’m glad you think so. These are inspired by Brazil, where I’m from. I’m Tarsila, by the way. Tarsila do Amaral.”
“Sophie Taeuber-Arp,” Sophie replied, extending her hand. “Your work is fascinating. It’s so vivid, so full of energy. How do you capture that?”
Tarsila leaned back in her chair, considering the question. “Brazil is a land of contrasts, of the modern and the ancient, of the natural world and the cities that are growing rapidly. I try to capture that tension, that vibrancy, in my work. I’m inspired by the people, the landscapes, the colors of my home. But I’m also here in Europe to learn, to absorb the techniques and ideas that are flourishing here.”
Sophie nodded, her mind already racing with possibilities. “I understand that tension. My work, though rooted in abstraction, is also a response to the world around me. I’m fascinated by geometry, by the way shapes and forms can create harmony, but there’s always a push and pull between order and chaos, between the mechanical and the organic.”
They talked for hours, sharing their experiences, their inspirations, and their struggles as women in a predominantly male art world. Sophie spoke of her work in Zurich, where Dada had been born in the chaos of war, and how she sought to bring a sense of order through her geometric designs. Tarsila shared stories of São Paulo, of the burgeoning modernist movement in Brazil, and how she longed to fuse the spirit of her homeland with the avant-garde techniques she was discovering in Paris.
As the evening wore on, they found themselves sketching together, exchanging ideas and experimenting with new forms. Sophie’s precise lines danced alongside Tarsila’s bold, sweeping curves. What emerged was a fascinating blend of forms that seemed to pulse with life, and organic shapes that carried a sense of structure and rhythm.
“Imagine what we could create if we combined our visions,” Tarsila mused, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “A new art, born from the fusion of our worlds.”
Sophie smiled, her mind alight with the possibilities. “Yes, I can see it, a dialogue between our cultures, between abstraction and expression. It would be something entirely new, something that transcends borders.”
Though separated by an ocean, their spirits remained connected, bound by a shared vision of what art could be — a bridge between worlds, a fusion of the modern and the timeless, the precise and the passionate.
The story you just read is a work of fiction.
This imaginary encounter between Tarsila do Amaral and Sophie Taeuber-Arp serves as a creative springboard for my new series of paintings.
Inspired by the fictional fusion of these two iconic artists’ styles, I find common ground in their shared pursuit of color, form, meaning and authenticity in a vastly different epoch.