Kop van een visser met snor 1923

Jean Emile Laboureur created this print, "Head of a Fisherman with a Mustache," using woodcut techniques. The strong lines and simplified shapes immediately capture attention. The composition is neatly structured around the fisherman's face, framed by his hat and the backdrop of sea and sailboats. Laboureur's formal approach simplifies the figure into geometric forms, reflecting a broader trend in early 20th-century art toward abstraction. The flat planes of color, primarily blues, greens, and reds, are divided distinctly with minimal tonal variation, enhancing the print’s graphic quality. This reduction to essential forms aligns with structuralist ideas, where underlying structures dictate the artwork's organization and meaning. The print isn't just a representation; it's an exercise in structuring visual elements. The bold lines and colors challenge traditional representational values. Art, here, becomes a sign in a semiotic system, inviting ongoing interpretation and questioning of fixed meanings.