Creation of the World 1924

Fernand Léger made this painting, Creation of the World, with gouache on paper, and what I find so compelling is his commitment to the process of simplifying form to its absolute basics. It’s like he’s asking, what is the bare minimum I need to suggest a figure? Léger’s limited palette – black, white, sienna – creates such a bold statement. The opaque gouache sits flatly on the paper, emphasizing the geometric shapes that make up the composition. Look at the face: just a few lines and rectangles suggest features. That long, white stroke, a stand-in for a nose or beard, is brilliant. It's a simple gesture, but it carries so much weight, right? This reduction to essential forms reminds me of early modernist sculptors like Brancusi, who also sought to capture the essence of a subject through abstraction. Léger, like them, is part of a conversation about how we see and represent the world. And, as with any good conversation, there’s no single right answer, just a lot of interesting perspectives.