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.
La Partie de Campagne, Original Lithograph, Modern, 1952, Excellent
By Fernand Léger
Located in OPOLE, PL
Fernand Léger (1881-1955) - La Partie de Campagne Lithograph from 1952. Dimensions of work: 52 x 35 cm Publisher: Tériade, Paris. On the verso another Lithographs in black. The ...
Lithograph
L'Eau, Original Lithograph, 1937, Plate Signed, Excellent
By Fernand Léger
Located in OPOLE, PL
Fernand Léger (1881-1955) - L'Eau Lithograph from 1937. Dimensions of work: 35 x 26 cm Publisher: Tériade, Paris. The work is in Excellent condition. Fast and secure shipment.
Lithograph
$1,299
H 39.5 in W 24.5 in
Air France Europe original vintage travel poster
By Jacques Nathan-Garamond 1
Located in Spokane, WA
Original AIR FRANCE EUROPE, Editions Perceval, artist: Jacques Nathan Garamond. Professional acid-free archival linen backed vintage travel post...
Lithograph
STELLA PEREGRINA
By Franz Marc
Located in Portland, ME
Marc, Franz (German, 1880-1916). STELLA PEREGRINA. FranzHanffstaengl, Munich, 1917. Only edition. Number 25 of the limited edition of 110. Folio (18 x 13 inches), parchment-bac...
Color
Chama Canyon hand pulled serigraph by William Hook
By William Hook
Located in Paonia, CO
Chama Canyon is a limited edition hand-pulled serigraph no. 225 /260 in excellent condition. It is signed in pencil and published by Aspen Mountain Graphics. sheet size 14 x 18 image 12 x 16 For American artist William Hook ( b. 1948- ) art was a central focus in his family home and he began his career in art at an early age.. He studied at several prestigious art schools in the US and abroad. His work has been featured in magazines such as Southwest Art, Art of the West, U. S. Art, American Artist and Focus Santa Fe. The book… Leading the West… by Donald Hagerty features William Hook as one of the most notable influences on the western art scene. Publishers Harper-Collins and North Light have included his work in numerous books written about the contemporary art process in Europe and America. Hook’s paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Denver Art Museum, the Tucson Art Museum, the University of New Mexico, the FORBES Museum, NYC, and the Genesee Museum, NY as well as in many corporate and private collections. His work has also been featured in prints for the New Mexico Symphony, Music from Angel Fire...
Screen
$68,000
H 71.25 in W 23.25 in
Poster for the 17th Exhibition of the Vienna Secession by Max Kurzweil
By Max Kurzweil
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Note: Due to the size, weight, and value of this piece, we require shipping through 1stDibs, for its cost effectiveness, full insurance coverage, and reliable handling. While standar...
Lithograph
$6,480
H 30.5 in W 20 in
L'Artist Phoenix Poster, 1972 Lithograph Print, Signed Expressionist
By Marc Chagall
Located in Milwaukee, WI
Marc Chagall "L'Artist Phoenix Poster" for Galerie Maeght from 1972. It is from the edition of 5000. 30 1/2" x 20" art 40 1/2" x 32 1/4" frame Marc Ch...
Lithograph
$340
H 26 in W 19 in
"Galerie Maeght, " an Original Color Lithograph Poster by Valerio Adami
By Valerio Adami
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Galerie Maeght" is an Original Lithograph Poster bu Valerio Adami. This poster was created to advertise Adami's show at the Galerie Maeght in 1976. The print is orange on the left s...
Lithograph
$350
H 9.75 in W 12 in
Bernard Buffet - "Clown on a Red Background" 1968 Colored Lithograph
By Bernard Buffet
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Buffet, Bernard Clown on a Red Background, 1968 Original Lithograph 9 3/4 x 12 in. Signed in plate From the limited edition of 4125 One of 11 works in the "Lithographs 1952-1966" P...
Lithograph
$188Sale Price|30% Off
H 20 in W 24 in
Face of the Night Lithograph, Abstract Expressionist, 1987, Unframed
By (after) Robert Motherwell
Located in Union City, NJ
FACE OF THE NIGHT (For Octavio Paz) is a limited run lithograph poster printed in multiple colors using traditional hand lithography techniques (not a photo reproduction) on archival...
Lithograph
$5,200
H 14.9 in W 14.6 in
Ottokar Mascha Folio, plate 9: "Darmstadt Poster"by Joseph Maria Olbricht
By Joseph Maria Olbrich
Located in Palm Beach, FL
After JOSEPH MARIA OLBRICHT (1867-1908) DARMSTADT POSTER, 1901, (In Mascha, no. 9) One of the founding members of the Vienna Secession and a highly esteemed architect, Olbricht was c...
Lithograph
Mere Biblique
By Théo Tobiasse
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist: Theo Tobiasse (French/Israeli, 1927-2012) Title: Mere Biblique Year: 1984 Medium: Color lithograph, with collage Edition: Numbered 172/175 in pencil Paper: Arches Image...
Lithograph
Judgment Hour
By Robert Flemming & Mizin Shin
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original mixed media, Photo Etching, Aquatint, Drypoint on paper by the collaboration of two artists, Robert Flemming and Mizin Shin. This piece entitled Judgment Hour measure ...
Paper, Mixed Media, Drypoint, Etching, Aquatint, Photogram
Bernard Buffet - "On the Beach" 1968 Colored Lithograph
By Bernard Buffet
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Buffet, Bernard On the Beach, 1968 Color lithograph on paper 9 1/2 x 12 1/4 in. Signed in plate From the limited edition of 4125 One of 11 works in the "Lithographs 1952-1966" Port...
Lithograph