Fernand Léger. The Museum of modern Art, New York Tomo ARTE

Fernand Leger is the only major modern artist to choose modernity itself as his subject. His enduring subject was the pulse and dynamism of everyday life. Leger saw the 20th century environment as a state of contrasts, a condition that he translated into art through forceful juxtaposition of shape, color, and line. His attempt to reconcile the formal concerns of artmaking with issues of social responsibility continues to be relevant to the art world of today. Accompanying texts recount Leger’s experience of and interest in America and America’s interest in him; explore refractions of Leger’s interests in the work of more recent artists; and discuss Leger’s ambition to make an art reflecting the new visual state of modern life. An illustrated chronology tells the story of the artist’s life, focusing on his time in America, the plate section is complemented by a series of short essays tracing the formal and thematic developments in his art, and a selected bibliography and detailed exhibition history complete the book.