Study for Le Disque 1918

Fernand Léger made this study for Le Disque using watercolor, gouache, and graphite on paper. The geometric forms are so buoyant. I can imagine Léger shuffling shapes around—rectangles, triangles, circles—searching for balance. It reminds me a little of late Cézanne, but also Stuart Davis. Look how he lays down thin washes of color, letting the white of the paper peek through. You can see every brushstroke. It’s very improvisational. That big black curve, for example, feels bold and decisive, like he just went for it! It almost seems to swing across the composition, pulling all the other shapes along with it. It's all about relationships—colors bouncing off one another, shapes locking together, lines creating rhythms. Léger's work reminds me that painting is a conversation—with oneself, with the medium, and with the history of art. We continue to find new ways to see and experience the world through abstract forms.