The album "Circus" 1950

Fernand Léger made this print for the album "Circus" with what looks like bold gouache, maybe with stencils. I imagine Léger making this, starting maybe with the plum purple ground, deciding where to put the yellow of the limbs, the hat. It looks like he had to think through the figure’s strange, almost impossible pose. The painting seems to be reaching for something beyond just representation, maybe an ideal of athleticism or movement. Léger’s linework is so definitive; it feels like the painting could collapse without it. It reminds me a little of Picasso but with a bit more of a machine-age vibe. Léger was clearly excited about the modern world. It feels like it’s part of the same conversation with Matisse, just with different stuff to say. It's like all these artists were chatting across the decades, inspiring each other to see and create in new ways.