A painter as well as a filmmaker, illustrator, stage-set designer, ceramicist and printmaker, Fernand Léger was one of the most prolific artists of the first half of the 20th century. His early mature work as a Cubist was marked by the use of bold colors and contrasts and a visual vocabulary inspired by industrial technology. In his later career, Léger turned to idiomatic, almost naïve depictions of human figures, in a belief that his work should be accessible to ordinary people and relevant to their lives.
Born in Normandy, the son of a cattle trader, Léger worked as an architectural draftsman in Paris while studying art. By 1908 he was a member of an artistic circle that included Marc Chagall, Robert Delaunay, sculptor Jacques Lipchitz, and the poet Guillaume Appolinaire, and through them he became connected to the Cubists. As opposed to the flat planes and neutral hues seen in the paintings of Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, Léger’s Cubist abstractions were devised with vivid colors and forms that had dimensionality. Soon after his army service in World War I — he was gassed at the Battle of Verdun — Léger entered his “mechanical” period. Convinced that technology would improve the human condition, he painted compositions of tubular shapes and cylinders that are reminiscent of machine parts. In other work, Léger sought to capture the bustle and brio of modern life with references to railroad stations, factories, street signs and billboards.
Léger had also emerged from the trenches with a deep concern to make his art engage the sorts of men and women he had met during the war. He sought to bring his work to a wider audience through film, theater sets and book illustrations. In the 1920s, influenced by Purism — a variant on Cubism that promoted a simpler and more direct approach to forms and compositions — Léger produced a series of paintings depicting everyday objects: a soda siphon, an accordion, a guitar and vase. The human figure returned to his work. By 1930, pure abstraction disappeared almost completely from Léger’s art in favor of simple studies of people. Their boldly outlined forms, placed against a bright background, can be regarded as an assemblage of parts — yet in these representations of dancers, acrobats and folks on bicycles, Léger seems to be articulating a kind of kinship and affection. You will see from the works on offer why Fernand Léger is often regarded as the warmest and most humane of the great modern artists.
Find a collection of original Fernand Léger art today on 1stDibs.
"House with balcony", Fernand Léger (1881-1955)
By Fernand Léger
Located in Paris, FR
Fernand Léger (1881–1955) was a French painter, sculptor, and filmmaker, and a major figure in modern art. Born in Normandy, he began his career influenced by Impressionism before tu...
Paper, India Ink, Watercolor
Price Upon Request
Composition, Original Modern Still Life Gouache Painting by Fernand Leger
By Fernand Léger
Located in Long Island City, NY
Fernand Leger's depiction of a still life with a pitcher and bowl of fruit starts in simplistic and tangible reality on the right side of the composition before quickly devolving int...
Paper, Gouache
$800
H 8.27 in W 6.3 in
Mughal School, 18th century – Emperor Jahangir in his harem in flagrante delicto
Located in Middletown, NY
Emperor Jahangir in his harem surrounded by lotus blossoms; symbols of paradise itself. Circa 1690. Gouache and ink with gold heightening on cream laid paper, 8 1/2 x 6 1/4 inches (...
Gold
$58,000
H 17.75 in W 15.5 in
New York Harbor with Ferry boats and Victorian Houses - Holiday Magazine Cover
By Saul Steinberg
Located in Miami, FL
Steinberg's Holiday Magazine Cover, " The North of Jersey " is similar to his famous New Yorker Cover "View of the World from 9th Avenue”. ...
India Ink, Gouache
Mughal School, 18th century Emperor Jahangir taking tea in his harem
Located in Middletown, NY
An illuminated page from a book likely in reference to palace life during Emperor Jahangir's reign over the Mughal Empire. circa 1750. Gouache and ink with heightening in gold on li...
Gold
$750
H 10 in W 6.5 in
Small, Charming, Fauvist Painting Michel Henry French Modernist School of Paris
By Michel Henry
Located in Surfside, FL
Michel-Henry was born in Langres in 1928 and has shown strong passion for drawing since his childhood. Michel-Henry is acknowledged as an important painter in French contemporary a...
Paper, Gouache
$850
H 5.4 in W 10.79 in
Mughal School, 18th century Emperor Jangahir on a pleasure boat with his harem a
Located in Middletown, NY
Emperor Jahangir depicted with his harem attendees aboard a pleasure cruise, the water filled with lotus blossoms; symbols of paradise itself. Circa 1750. Gouache and ink with gold ...
Gold
$850
H 8.27 in W 6.03 in
Mughal School, 18th century – Emperor Jahangir dancing with his harem attendees
Located in Middletown, NY
A joyful scene of lighthearted merriment in the palace of Jangahir Mahal Agra Circa 1750. Gouache and ink with gold heightening on light weight cream laid paper, 8 1/4 x 6 inches (2...
Gold
Mughal School, 17th century Tiger Hunt near the Jahangir Maha, Agra
Located in Middletown, NY
An illuminated page from a book likely in reference to palace life during Emperor Jahangir's reign over the Mughal Empire. c 1690. Gouache and ink with heightening in gold on light ...
Gold
$920Sale Price|20% Off
H 16 in W 12 in D 0.25 in
Indian Dancer - Vintage Illustration in Ink and Watercolor
By Irene Pattinson
Located in Soquel, CA
Indian Dancer - Vintage Illustration in Ink and Watercolor A stoic, dark-haired woman in elaborate dress is sitting cross-legged in this illustration by Irene Pattinson (American, 1909-1999). Pattinson uses fine ink line detail and a vibrant pink watercolor for a splash of color. Signed at the bottom, "Irene Pattinson." Provenance: The Artist, Estate of Irene Pattinson: David Carlson; Estate of Larry Miller Fine Art, Robert Azensky Fine Art. Presented in a new white mat with foam core backing. Mat size: 16"H x 12"W Paper size: 11.75"H x 8.5"W Image size: 7.5"H x 6.5"W Irene Pattinson (American, 1909-1999) studied at the California School of Fine Art (now The San Francisco Art Institute), San Francisco State College and The Marion Hartwell School of Design. She was President of the San Francisco Woman Artists Association 1955-56. Provenance: The Artist, Estate of Irene Pattinson: David Carlson; Estate of Larry Miller Fine Art, Robert Azensky Fine Art. Solo Exhibitions: Lucien Labaudt Gallery 1955; San Francisco Museum of Art, 1961 (39 works). Selected Group Exhibitions: San Francisco Art Association Annual 1948, 54, 55; San Francisco Woman Artists, 1957-1960; Oakland Art Museum Annual, 1951, 58; California Palace of the Legion of Honor, 1960; Richmond Art Center, 1955, 56, 57, 58; San Francisco Art Institute 1959, 60. The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, 1958, 59, 60, 62, 63; Winter Invitational, California Palace of The Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 1960; Fourth Winter Invitational, California Palace of The Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 1963. Awards: First Place, San Francisco Woman Artists Assoc., 1957, 1959; San Francisco Art Festival 1957;Literature: San Francisco Art Institute - A catalog of the Art Ban 1962/63; San Francisco and the Second Wave: The Blair Collection Exhibitions: 1963 The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, San Francisco, CA 1963 California Palace of The Legion of Honor: Forth Winter Invitational, San Francisco, CA 1962 The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, San Francisco, CA 1961 San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA 1960 California...
Paper, India Ink, Watercolor, Pen
$875
H 22.5 in W 18.25 in
'Fruit Still Life' original watercolor and gouache on board, signed Yolanda
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Though signed "Yolanda," the artist of this gouache and watercolor painting is unknown. The still life, contained and symmetrical, is dominated by the form of a pear. On either side,...
Watercolor, Gouache, Board
Composition
By Karl Peter Röhl
Located in Zug, CH
Abstract composition on paper by Karl Peter Röhl.
India Ink, Watercolor
$636Sale Price|20% Off
H 13 in W 10 in D 0.25 in
African Mama - Vintage Illustration in Ink and Watercolor
By Irene Pattinson
Located in Soquel, CA
African Mama - Vintage Illustration in Ink and Watercolor A charming illustration, by Irene Pattinson (American, 1909-1999), shows a woman with a...
Paper, India Ink, Watercolor, Pen
$997
H 34.65 in W 18.9 in D 0.12 in
Original 70's Hand Painted Textile Design Gouache Pink & Black Color on Paper
Located in ALCOY/ALCOI, ES
Flowers and pixel design. Sealed on the back with design studio name and number 268 We offer a small number of these original illustration designs by this design studio based in Alc...
Paper, Gouache
Sold
H 9.45 in W 14.18 in
Les Constructeurs Gouache on Paper, Framed, 1952, Signed, Bold Colors
By Fernand Léger
Located in Paris, FR
Fernand Léger’s Les constructeurs (1952) is a striking example of the artist’s mature vision, where modern life, labor, and dynamic composition converge in bold, rhythmic form. Execu...
Paper, Gouache