The album "Circus" 1950

Fernand Léger made this print, "Circus," using bold black outlines, broad areas of flat color, and a screen printing process that allowed for simple shapes and forms. It makes me think about Léger in his studio, simplifying the world into these cylinders, spheres, and cones, reducing forms to their barest essentials. I love the circus performers and the checkerboard floor. What does it mean? I am not sure. The circus is a space of playful absurdity where reality is bent, broken, and reconfigured into something new. Léger took apart his figures to create an image full of movement and energy. The circus, for Léger, might have been a symbol of modernity itself—a dynamic, chaotic, and ever-changing spectacle. His painting feels related to the work of other great modernists like Picasso, Matisse, and the Dada artists. He inspires me to keep pushing the boundaries of my own work.