Le Lecteur 1937

Louis Marcoussis made this painting, Le Lecteur, in 1937, and right away you can see how he’s working with color and shape to build something new. I love how the browns and reds play against the pale blues and yellows, creating a space that feels both familiar and strange. Look at the surface, how the paint is laid down in these flat, almost geometric areas. It’s not about hiding the process here; it’s about celebrating it. The way the colors meet and the lines define these shapes—it’s all part of the story. Like, take the way he renders the reader’s hands holding the book; they’re simplified, almost abstract, but they still manage to convey the act of holding, of engaging with the text. It's as though he is using these basic elements to construct a new reality on the canvas. Marcoussis reminds me of artists like Juan Gris, who were also playing with Cubism to reimagine how we see the world. Art isn’t about answers; it’s about asking better questions.