Femme allongée 1920

Fernand Léger made this monochrome wash drawing, Femme allongée, using diluted ink to build up a tonal composition of layered forms. You know, when I look at this piece, I'm reminded that painting is just a bunch of decisions. Léger is playing with shapes and their shadows, almost like he’s building a sculpture on paper. The limited palette – variations on grey – throws the shapes into relief. It's like he’s figuring out how light wraps around these tubular body parts. Consider the way the fingers are described with a few simple lines. It’s shorthand, but it totally works. I love the way he simplifies the human form into these almost architectural elements. Léger, like Picasso and Braque, was in conversation with Cezanne. You can see the echoes of that in this piece. It’s all about pushing the boundaries of representation, inviting us to see the world in new ways.