Exit the Ballets Russes: Fernand Léger’s depiction of modern society

Abstract

With the impact of the Industrial Revolution, significant societal and individual transformations occurred in 20th-century Europe. These transformations also manifested in art. One of the important topics to be considered within this context is the aesthetics of machines, and the form of the machine plays a central role in the works of many artists. In this context, the aim of this study is to examine Fernand Léger’s work named “Exit the Ballets Russes” in both formal and sociological terms, revealing how 20th-century modern society is represented through art. In line with this purpose, the study is based on the analysis and interpretation of data obtained through a comprehensive review of the literature on the conditions of the period in which the work was produced, machine aesthetics, and the artist. Based on the obtained data, the artist’s relevant work is analyzed within the framework of pre-iconographic examination, iconographic description, and iconological interpretation stages, based on Erwin Panofsky’s Iconographic and Iconological Criticism Method. The analysis indicates that the symbols created through the design elements in Léger’s work clearly reflected the social and economic changes that happened as society moved into the modern era, the new role of individuals adapting to these changes, and a world influenced by machine aesthetics.