Orla Muff

ORLA MUFF (Copenhagen, 1903- 1984).
Untitled, 1970-77.
Oil on canvas.
Signed and dated in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 140 x 90 cm; 149 x 99 cm (frame).

The canvas in tender is inspired by the Picassian cubist investigations of the early twentieth century to which Orla Muff gives a certain dreamlike air. Two young girls display their naked bodies in an ethereal landscape full of vegetal forms. The orange, fiery and passionate tonality of the bodies contrasts with the green ambivalences used for the background.
Orla Muff trained in art at the Copenhagen Technical School under the supervision of Carl Lund, the leading theater artist of the time. He traveled through Sweden, Holland, France and Germany. Early in his career he was involved in the creation of Art Deco sets for leading European magazines and theatrical productions. These designs included sets for performances at the People's Theater in Copenhagen, the Theater of Austrian theater producer Max Reinhardt in Berlin and the Norwegian Mayol Theater in Oslo. In addition to his set designs, Muff began easel painting in the early 1930s. He created portraits, figurative works and abstract paintings. He exhibited successfully in many European exhibitions and received several awards. Today an extensive collection of Orla Muff's illustrated postcards can be found on the Danish Postcard Artists site.