Une Voiture à bras dans un paysage 1953

This is Fernand Léger’s ‘Une Voiture à bras dans un paysage,’ and it’s just bursting with bold primary colours, outlined in black. I can imagine Léger, with his flat brushes, wrestling with those shapes, trying to find the right balance between the figures and the architecture. I feel like he must have been thinking about the energy of the city, the way people and machines work together. Look at the man pushing the handcart - he’s so blocky and determined, it’s like he’s part of the urban landscape himself. I see how the paint is applied really thickly, giving the surface a rough, almost industrial texture. That archway, outlined in orange and black, becomes a frame within a frame, drawing our eye to the human drama unfolding inside. I imagine Léger in conversation with other painters like Picasso and Braque, all trying to make sense of a rapidly changing world. I think painting is really an invitation to slow down and look closely.