Iridescent Interpenetration

Iridescent Interpenetration (Italian: Compenetrazione iridiscente) is the title of several artworks and studies in a series by Italian Futurist painter Giacomo Balla, created between 1912 and 1914, which feature intersecting triangles and other geometric patterns in kaleidoscopic color.

Iridescent Interpenetration
Italian: Compenetrazione iridiscente
Artist	Giacomo Balla
Year	1912 (1912)–1914 (1914)

In Iridescent Interpenetration, Balla attempts to separate the experience of light from the perception of objects as such, in an approach he had experimented with in Welcome to Düsseldorf. The works suggest an extension of the pictured surface beyond the borders of the frame.[1]

The earliest known study in the series was on a postcard which Balla mailed to his friend and student Gino Galli on November 21, 1912. He referred to the images as iride ('spectrum' or 'rainbow').[1]

Works in the series include:

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Title	Year	Dimensions	Material	Gallery	References
Iridescent Interpenetration No. 1	1912	99 cm × 59 cm (39 in × 23 ^1⁄4 in)	oil and wax crayon on canvas	Lydia Winston Malbin Collection	[2]
Compenetrazione iridiscente n. 4 – studio della luce (Iridescent Interpenetration No. 4 – Study of light)	1912 or 1913	49.5 cm × 42 cm (19 ^1⁄2 in × 16 ^9⁄16 in)	oil and pencil on paper	Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin, Italy	[3][4]
Iridescent Interpenetration No.5 – Eucalyptus	1914	101 cm × 120 cm (39 ^5⁄8 in × 47 ^1⁄4 in)	oil on canvas		[5][6]
Iridescent Interpenetration No. 7	1912	83.0 cm × 83.0 cm (32 ^11⁄16 in × 32 ^11⁄16 in)	oil on canvas	Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin, Italy	[7][8]
Iridescent Interpenetration	1913	25 cm × 50 cm (9 ^13⁄16 in × 19 ^11⁄16 in)			[9]
Iridescent Compenetration	1913		watercolor on paper	private collection	[10]
Compenetrazione iridescente n. 13 (Iridescent Interpenetration No.13)	1914				[11]
Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente	1912	18.6 cm × 24.0 cm (7 ^5⁄16 in × 9 ^7⁄16 in)	pencil and watercolor on paper	Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin, Italy	[12]
Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente (dai Taccuini di Düsseldorf) (Iridescent interpenetration [from the Düsseldorf notebooks])	1912	17.6 cm × 18.7 cm (6 ^15⁄16 in × 7 ^3⁄8 in)	pencil and watercolor on paper	Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin, Italy	[13]
Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente n. 2 (Iridescent Interpenetration no. 2)	1912	22.1 cm × 17.6 cm (8 ^11⁄16 in × 6 ^15⁄16 in)	pencil and watercolor on paper	Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin, Italy	[14]

See also

• List of works by Giacomo Balla

References

1. Poggi, Christine (2009). "Photogenic Abstraction: Giacomo Balla's Iridescent Interpenetrations". Inventing Futurism: The Art and Politics of Artificial Optimism. Princeton University Press. pp. 109–149. ISBN 9780691133706.
2. "BALLA, GIACOMO; Iridescent Interpenetration No. 1; 1912". University of Michigan. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
3. "Iridescent Interpenetration No. 4 - Study Of Light". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
4. Dell'Arco, Maurizio Fagiolo (September 15, 1988). Balla, the futurist. Rizzoli. p. 72. ISBN 0847809196. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
5. "Iridescent Interpenetration No.5 - Eucalyptus". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
6. Alfieri, Bruno (1969). "Metro". Metro (16–17): 112. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
7. "Iridescent Interpenetration No.7". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
8. "Compenetrazione iridiscente n. 7 (Iridescent interpenetration no. 7)". Inventing Abstraction 1910–1925. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
9. "Iridescent Interpenetration". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
10. "Iridescent Compenetration". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
11. "Iridescent Interpenetration No. 13". WikiArt. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
12. "Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente (Iridescent Interpenetration)". Inventing Abstraction 1910–1925. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
13. "Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente (dai Taccuini di Düsseldorf) (Iridescent interpenetration [from the Düsseldorf notebooks])". Inventing Abstraction 1910–1925. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
14. "Study for Compenetrazione iridiscente n. 2 (Iridescent Interpenetration no. 2)". Inventing Abstraction 1910–1925. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 21 September 2016.