1918 -1955 · Everyday object, autonomous color and contrast

In Fernand Léger's still lifes, vase, compass, shell and fruit lose their discretion: enlarged, surrounded and moved, they become the actors of a modern space.

Fernand Léger approaches still life as a laboratory of reports rather than as a peaceful table. After cubist fragmentation, he wants to make the object clear, solid and available to the collective eye. A vase, a pear, a compass or a spinning top is extracted from its usual context, enlarged, turned and confronted with shapes of another scale. The black outline ensures readability, but the color does not always obediently fill the silhouette: it can move, create a counter-rhythm or unite several objects. In Composition with compass and shell, the geometric tool meets a natural spiral shape; this gap activates the entire surface. The spinning top suggests rotation and play, while the pear dish transforms fruit and container into simple masses. Even the vase of flowers avoids decorative illusion through the power of drawing and the separation of flat areas. Léger refuses the traditional hierarchy between noble subject and everyday object. He admires the visual effectiveness of displays, posters and industrial products, while maintaining very conscious pictorial production. His still lifes can integrate figures, red tables, lamps or alarm clocks and become real environments. His still lifes can integrate figures, red tables, lamps or alarm clocks and become real environments. His still lifes can integrate figures, red tables, lamps or alarm clocks and become real environments. The everyday object gains a new freedom: detached from use, it acts by weight, color, contour and contrast. Fernand's "Still lifes" selection Léger notably compares Still Life with a vase of flowers and Composition with a compass and shell. His reading favors movement.

Lightweight frees the object from the table: a shell, compass or pear can then occupy the space with the force of architecture.