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NEO-CUBISM
1948
Commencing in the
winter of 1947-48, Skov’s commitment
to Neo-cubism lasted for over thirty-five years. During this time he
assiduously practiced and expanded on this art form as few others, with the
notable exception of Pablo Picasso, of course, had ever done. This places
him in the unique position as the only substantial, second generation
Danish Cubist painter who remained devoted to Cubism for over a generation.
Starting with his
first purely Cubist paintings in 1947, Skov worked almost exclusively with
this idiom during the following forty years. This period, taken as a whole,
therefore represents the major, mature phase in his comprehensive artistic
development. Although his work continued to evolve during this time, and
several distinct artistic expressions and periods can be identified, his
consistent aesthetic frame of reference remained the Cubist perception.
In reviewing this
major phase of Skov’s work, it is justified to use the term Neo-cubism in
order to characterize it, and thereby set it apart from the first
generation Cubism, because it is significantly distinct, both in its
genesis and its content, from the initial development of Cubism. Skov’s
Neo-cubism clearly also was sufficiently different in time and place to warrant
the use of this separate term. An understanding of these differences
provides a basis for the appreciation of the uniqueness of Skov’s work and
its place in Danish and European modern art.
Skov’s Neo-cubism,
starting in the winter of 1947-48 and
continuing for forty years, was a logical extension of his prior
artistic development and had already been anticipated in his work from La
Colle in 1938 and Madeira in 1946. His artistic and aesthetic concerns
became known to a few close friends and his immediate family through
extensive discussions during 1948 and the following years, as he
consolidated and expanded his understanding of this demanding paradigm.
Based on the memory of these discussions, some of the main elements of his
concerns and considerations during this period are recaptured in the
following, which also includes comments regarding the context of his
relationship with Cubism.
CUBISM REVISITED
Skov’s awareness of
Cubism came initially from seeing paintings by George Braque, Juan Gris,
Fernand Leger, Pablo Picasso, Albert Gleizes, Le Fauconnier, Robert
Delaunay, Jean Metzinger, Henri Laurens, Andre Derain and other
contemporary cubists at exhibitions during the years 1929 through 1932 in
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