'Changing the Way We Look at Art' | Fernand Léger’s 'Contraste de formes'

This groundbreaking painting of the early 20th century marks a departure from the purely figurative and the advance towards abstract art.

Painted by Fernand Léger in 1913, 'Contraste de formes' belongs to a series of paintings that changed for ever the way we look at art. Across the course of just a few months, in a sequence of some 14 canvases, Léger advanced beyond Cubism into a visual language that abandoned the representational concerns of his contemporaries, Picasso and Braque. Instead, his only subject was pure, abstract shapes and colours, hinged on a network of forceful lines.

‘It’s like a punch to the solar plexus,’ says Conor Jordan, Deputy Chairman, Impressionist and Modern Art at Christie’s in New York. ‘The rhythm that bursts out of it is palpable and exciting to be in the presence of. To stand just inches away is a great thrill — it gives you a sense of the beautiful rawness of the surface.’

The 'Contrastes de formes' have long been considered cornerstones of important collections of modern art, and thus nearly all examples from the series are today housed in major institutions.

Find out more: http://www.christies.com/features/Fernand-Leger-Contraste-de-formes-1913-8624-3.aspx?sc_lang=en#FID-8624

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