Sacred Heart of Audincourt 1951

Fernand Léger made this stained glass window, Sacred Heart of Audincourt, sometime in the mid-20th century. It’s a composition of bold reds, yellows, and whites against a deep blue ground. Can you imagine Léger in the workshop, carefully placing each piece of colored glass? I love how he abstracts recognizable forms – hearts, suns, celestial bodies – into almost industrial shapes. Look at those white shards cutting across the blue. They remind me of constructivist sculptures or even machine parts. Léger was always fascinated by the modern world, the beauty of machines and cities. The black leading that holds the glass together creates this powerful grid, giving structure to the swirling energy within each panel. It's like he’s trying to contain something explosive! Maybe the sacred heart itself? It is so like a sun, a motif you find again and again in art and visual culture.