![Etude pour 'Les Constructeurs': l'équipe au repos [Study for 'The Constructors': The Team at Rest]](http://www.nationalgalleries.org/media/15/collection/GMA 2845.jpg)
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Fernand Léger
Etude pour 'Les Constructeurs': l'équipe au repos [Study for 'The Constructors': The Team at Rest]
1950Léger saw the post-war process of reconstruction in France as an opportunity for positive, collective action. In this harmonious scene, man, industry and nature work together for the greater good. The workers are intertwined with each other and with their surroundings as they rebuild society. The bright colours reflect the positive and harmonious mood of the idealised scene. Léger has chosen to combine realism and abstraction to depict his socialist subject matter. The artist was a member of the French Communist party, and this painting suggests that the needs of the individual should give way to those of the team. Dressed in overalls, the workers build a structure in Communist red.
In 1950 Léger made a series of paintings depicting construction workers. Although he had been interested in depicting modernity for some time, he was particularly inspired by the post-war process of reconstruction in France. He saw a group of electricians working on pylons and was struck by the contrast between the natural surroundings and the metallic girders. After joining the French Communist Party in 1945, Léger concentrated on the human figure, as he wanted to make his work accessible to everyone. Eager that his art should be seen by ordinary workers, he exhibited the series of 'Constructors' paintings in the canteen of the Renault car factory in Paris.
- Glossary (1 term)
- Open
Modernity
Modernity
The state of embracing the most up-to-date ideas and techniques. In art, the notion is often associated with the 19th century French poet Charles Baudelaire who encouraged artists to represent the modern world based on their lived experience.
Born in Normandy, Léger settled in Paris in 1902, where he was apprenticed to an architect. His first cubist paintings date from 1909. He was a major figure in the cubist movement, although his work featured bold tubular shapes instead of the fragmentation seen in the paintings of Picasso or Braque. After the First World War, Léger became fascinated with machinery and industrial forms. His work from the mid-1920s was increasingly stylized, using bold flat colours with strong outlines. Léger lived in America during the Second World War and was inspired by the dynamism and vitality of the country.
- Glossary (2 terms)
- Open
Cubism , Stylization
Cubism
A style of painting originated by Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso in the first two decades of the 20th century. Instead of painting a figure or object from a fixed position they represented it from multiple viewpoints.
Stylization
To represent something in accordance with artistic convention rather than its actual appearance.
- Credits Purchased 1984
- Medium Oil on canvas
- Size 162.00 x 129.50 cm (framed: 183.00 x 152.20 x 9.00 cm)
- Enlarge
- ? ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2004
Communism
The years following the Second World War saw an increase in left-wing political activity. In France, the Communist party was particularly strong. It was supported by many well-known figures, including Pablo Picasso, and was the main political party for workers.
