Orange in art

Jean-Marie Gitard (Mr STRANGE), Death orange, 2020. Photomontage on aluminium, 40 x 40 cm.

Orange, like the fruit of the orange tree

It is important to note that, before the end of the 15th century, the colour orange, which had been used for a long time in Europe, did not yet have its own name but was simply referred to by the word 'yellow-red', a literal juxtaposition of the terms used to indicate the two colours at the basis of the aforementioned shade. This changed only in the late 15th and early 16th century, when Portuguese merchants began to import the first orange trees from Asia into Europe. It was precisely the fruits of this latter plant that provided the name for the colour, which was translated into many different languages, such as English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

Ley Mboramwe, Without head, 2021. Acrylic on canvas, 1.200 x 1.200 cm.

János Kujbus, Paved road, 2022. Oil on canvas, 150 x 180 cm.  

Why is it important to surround yourself with orange works of art? 

Orange is a very fruitful colour for chromotherapy, an alternative medicine within which the different colours represent, each in its own way, a true therapeutic tool, aimed at treating disorders of various identities. In fact, the color of oranges, derived from a balanced mix of red and yellow, is said to help regain energy, positivity, self-esteem, mental concentration, and self-confidence, while also favouring creativity and independence. It is precisely these peculiarities that make the color suitable for treating depressive symptoms, as well as for bringing considerable benefits to people who, having suffered considerable trauma, feel the need to banish negative emotions that are difficult to manage. In addition, orange is also good for treating people who are tired, indecisive, fearful, and lack self-confidence, inviting them to enjoy life with more light-heartedness and initiative. Lastly, it is important to emphasise that, in addition to benefiting the mind, this colour also positively stimulates the body, promoting blood circulation, relieving muscle tension, promoting the development of the immune system and transmitting energy and vitality. 

Benedict Olorunnisomo, Tongue tied, 2021. Acrylic on canvas, 92 x 80 cm.

Yaroslav Kurbanov, Selbstisolation, 2022. Acrylic on canvas, 86 x 66 cm.

Orange in the History of Art

The colour orange has been present in art history since the earliest civilisations. In fact, in ancient Egypt, artists used to use an orange mineral pigment, called realgar, for tomb paintings. This latter pigment, which is highly toxic, was very similar to orpiment, another mineral that was used in the production of colors and was also very popular in Ancient Rome. In this context, it should be noted that both the orange hue derived from orpimentum and that one from realgar were widely used even in the Middle Ages, where they were popular, especially in the production of illuminated manuscripts. Unfortunately, however, during the Renaissance, this colour did not meet with great success; it was used in clothing by peasants and middle-class people to roughly imitate the precious reds worn by the nobility. On the contrary, orange rose to prominence during the 18th and 19th centuries, as evidenced by numerous depictions of Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruits, and the famous portrait of the Inspiration by Jean-Honoré Fragonard. As for the impact that this colour had within artistic trends, it was widely used by the Pre-Raphaelites, so much so that the orange-red hair of Elizabeth Siddal, wife of painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti, became the symbol of the movement. In addition, Sir Frederic Leighton, British Pre-Raphaelite sculptor and painter, created Flaming June, an iconic work depicting a sleeping young woman wearing a bright orange dress. For the art world, however, the invention of the French scientist Louis Vauquelin was decisive. With the discovery of the mineral crocoite, he led to the advent of the synthetic pigment orange chrome in 1809. Indeed, both the discovery of laboratory colours and the invention of the metal tube, dated 1841, led artists to paint outdoors. Promoters of this trend were undoubtedly the Impressionists, for whom orange was a very important colour, so much so that, in 1872, Claude Monet painted Impression, Sunrise, an iconic work of the movement, in which a small orange sun is immortalised, accompanied by light of the same hue reflected on clouds and water. With regard to Post-Impressionism, great favourites of orange were Cézanne, Gauguin and Toulouse-Lautrec, although none of them loved this colour as much as Van Gogh, whose artistic investigation often focused on the search for chromatic contrasts: "seeking oppositions of blue with orange, of red with green, of yellow with violet, seeking broken colours and neutral colours to harmonise the brutality of the extremes, seeking to make colours intense, and not a harmony of greys".  

Hersk, Something to suck mini #310, 2020. Wooden sculpture, 62 x 22 x 5 cm.

Alessandro Piano, Alter ego oscar Orange, 2021. Sculpture, 25 x 16 x 8 cm / 1.50 kg. 

Orange artworks by Artmajeur artists

Some of the greatest masterpieces of all time, marked by the strong presence of orange, were perhaps conceived with the intention of exploiting and disseminating the "chromotherapeutic" powers of this cheerful hue, also dealing with the most dramatic and introspective themes, such as those explored by Edvard Munch's The Scream (1893-1910) and Francis Bacon's Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion (1944). Similarly, works with lighter subjects, which are more in tune with the positivity of this colour, are well represented by Albert Joseph Moore's Midsummer (1887), Paul Klee's Senecio (1922) and Egon Schiele's Self-portrait in orange jacket (1913). Within the contemporary world, this high tradition of colour is also carried on by the rich production of Artmajeur's artists, exemplified by the works of Andrey Pingachev, Sabina D'Antonio and Allias.

Andrey Pingachev, Evening twilight, 2021. Oil on canvas, 61 76.5 cm.

Andrey Pingachev: Evening twilight

Evening twilight captures a romantic sunset, which, placed above a limited expanse of water and a narrow strip of land, powerfully describes all the nuances of a vast sky literally "invaded" by orange, a colour richly investigated through the alternating consistency of more or less dense cloud banks. The strong atmospheric impact of this colour reminds us of an undisputed masterpiece in the history of art, also indelibly marked by the presence of orange, namely Claude Monet's Impression, Sunrise. This latter painting, intended to narrate that moment of the day that opposes the sun's rest, i.e., dawn, depicts a view of the port of Le Havre, which, realised through quick brushstrokes juxtaposed without blending together, highlights the vividness of the orange of the sun, the watery reflections, and the sky. 

Sabina D'Antonio, Sunset shore, 2022. Acrylic / stencil / collage / textile fibre on canvas, 100 x 100 cm.

Sabina D'Antonio: Sunset shore

Sabina D'Antonio's work, on the other hand, depicts an abstract sunset, rendered to perfection by the shades of orange, which have been skilfully distributed through brushstrokes arranged above a hypothetical and synthetic strip of land, realised through a smaller ochre-coloured expanse, located in the lower part of the canvas. This work, divided into two horizontal chromatic rectangles, is almost reminiscent of a sort of very personal interpretation of Mark Rothko's Orange, Red, Yellow (1961). In fact, the latter masterpiece, sold by Christie's in 2012 for USD 86,882,500, was also created by colour fields arranged in rectangles. It is precisely this organisation of the support that allows the viewer to look at the geometric figures in a much more contemplative way, encouraging identification with the emotions embodied in the colours.

Allias, Futuro, 2022. Digital painting on canvas, 40 x 40 cm.

Allias: Future

In Allias' digital painting, within an all-orange atmosphere, tags, graffiti, and a statuesque ancient face find their place. The latter has probably been placed there with the intention of ideally uniting the great figurative culture of the past with the more contemporary urban manifestations, arousing in the viewer a strong sense of continuity, aimed at recognising in art, and in mankind, a single essence in the making. This concept of consequentiality can also be found when Future is compared with an earlier and iconic work of street art, also predominantly realised in orange, namely Keith Haring's mural Crack is Wack (1986). This masterpiece, located in the Harlem district of New York, deals with a different and much more challenging theme, as it serves as a warning to the all-too widespread crack addiction within contemporary society.