Sonia Delaunay: A Retrospective Exhibition (on view at the Albright-Knox from February 3 to March 16, 1980) was the largest survey ever assembled of Delaunay’s work at that time. The exhibition included more than 200 works spanning eight decades and was organized by Albright-Knox Director Robert T. Buck, Jr.
The exhibition opened with a Members’ Preview on February 2, 1980, and was celebrated throughout its run with a series of events, including films, concerts, lectures, poetry readings, a family workshop, and a fashion show that highlighted the activities of Sonia Delaunay and her contemporaries in the Paris avant-garde during the 1920s.
In addition, the museum’s Gallery Shop presented a collection of items reflecting the era and style of the artist, and a rare video interview with Sonia Delaunay in Paris in 1977 was on view in the Sculpture Court.
The Albright-Knox's collection includes 19 works by Delaunay, including Rythme coloré (Colored Rhythm), 1958, which was on view in the 1980 retrospective, as seen in one of the photos below.
Albright-Knox Director Robert T. Buck, Jr. (left) leads a tour of Sonia Delaunay: A Retrospective during the Members' Opening on February 2, 1980. Image courtesy of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Digital Assets Collection and Archives, Buffalo, New York.
Guests at the Members' Preview of Sonia Delaunay: A Retrospective on February 2, 1980. Image courtesy of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Digital Assets Collection and Archives, Buffalo, New York.
Installation view of Sonia Delaunay: A Retrospective. Image courtesy of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Digital Assets Collection and Archives, Buffalo, New York.
Installation view of Sonia Delaunay: A Retrospective. Image courtesy of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Digital Assets Collection and Archives, Buffalo, New York.
Sonia Delaunay Boutique in the Sculpture Court. Image courtesy of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Digital Assets Collection and Archives, Buffalo, New York.
