The Argentinean son of Italian parents, Emilio Pettoruti made a formative journey to Europe, where he stayed from 1913 to 1924 and participated directly in avant-garde groups, although he did not adhere to the dicta of any movement. La del Abanico Verde o El abanico verde (1919) shows Pettoruti’s unique vision of modern art. The woman’s body is synthesised into geometric forms. She holds a fan in her hand. The curves of the fan in motion find visual resonance in the lines surrounding the lady’s head, emphasising the dynamic perception of movement, a central interest that Pettoruti shared with the Italian Futurists. The folds of the fan’s body also allowed Pettoruti to demonstrate his mastery of the fragmented and successive planes typical of Cubism. The woman’s pink dress, however, escapes the chromatic sobriety of Cubism and recalls the pink tones of the angels’ tunics painted by Fra Angelico, an artist whom Pettoruti studied. This painting was first exhibited in Milan in 1919, where Pettoruti was living at that time.
—Florencia Malbran
