La Léçon d’anatomie 

Editor: Here we have Léonor Fini’s oil painting, “La Leçon d’anatomie”. It’s a very intriguing piece, the colors are so muted, almost pastel-like, yet the subject matter feels quite intense. What strikes you most about it? Curator: I am drawn to Fini's deliberate use of oil paint. Notice the build-up of layers, particularly in the subjects' dresses. This process, a repetitive act of adding and modifying, highlights the labor involved. Doesn't the traditional 'fine art' label seem a bit restrictive when you consider the materiality and effort poured into its making? Editor: Definitely, seeing it as a process changes things. So you're saying that thinking about the layers of paint helps us appreciate it? Curator: Exactly! Fini challenges traditional hierarchies by embedding the physicality of creation right into the visual experience. The female figures too – seemingly detached observers – what is their relationship to the 'anatomy lesson', and how is it depicted, produced, and consumed? It appears as though all the figures are dolls – almost like shop mannequins – are the artists playing at a different set of labour or manufacturing? Editor: That’s a great point! They do have that almost uncanny valley vibe to them, particularly given the flatness and artifice implied in those colours. I hadn't thought of that! I was caught up in the almost unsettling surrealism, I didn't consider the production and consumption implied! Curator: Precisely. And how might her identity as a woman factor into her material choices and the subjects she represents? Does her access to materials or studio space influence this work’s creation or even subject matter? Editor: This perspective really transforms my understanding of this piece. It encourages one to ask more complex questions beyond the immediately visible narrative. Curator: Indeed. By acknowledging the 'how' alongside the 'what,' we move past a surface-level reading.