Comparison of Matisses and Legers works essays

Comparison of Matisse's and Leger's works essays Henri Matisse and Fernand Leger were two of the most influential artist of the Twentieth Century. Their styles though very different, came from similar beginnings. Both of these artists took their beginnings and lead them into a whole New World for art. Two examples of their unique styles are Matisses The Young Sailor, 1906 and Legers Women with a Cat, 1921. In The Young Sailor, Matisse brings forth this abstract, intellectual use of color. His characteristic style was formed with use of flat, brilliant color and fluid lines. He uses a simplistic composition, where the subject is placed in the middle of the canvas. He also uses vivid bold color patches to give the work balance and depth. Matisse achieves this sense of space through an intense, luminous orange surrounding and a deep purple and green in the subjects clothing. The intensive orange color pushes the dull purple and green forward, and the orange is sustained to the background. Also through the subjects body positioning we can establish a sense of space because the artist has you looking down upon the subject. In Legers Women with a Cat the shapes and tones gives this painting a different sense of depth and space. In Legers painting you achieve a sense of depth because the figure's body is positioned. We are obviously looking down on the subject, but because of the hard black shapes behind the figure it makes the space shallow. Leger uses very dull tones and colors that make the painting seem flat and give the work a cold mechanic feeling, and with these dull tones you are not able to grab a sense of depth. Leger handles his painting as if he was creating a composition through pattern not focusing too much on realism. His composition is simplistic because he centers his subject in the middle of the canvas, but unlike Matisses painting where the subject seems relaxed in his space, Leger uses hard black lines behind the figure that run across...