
This still life is a prime example of Purism, a style developed in 1918 by the architect Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (later called Le Corbusier) and the painter Amédée Ozenfant and championed in their journal, L’Esprit nouveau (The New Spirit). Promoting the elimination of the picturesque in favor of mathematical order and logic, Purist artists, including Fernand Léger, sought to represent the modern, "universal" forms of the world—especially machine-made objects—in a precise and balanced way as part of their effort to promote a new, modern classicism. Despite the generally smooth, brushless style of Purist pictures, Still Life Filled with Space has an unusual amount of brushwork and texture, notably in the patterned border, which the artist made by dragging a comblike tool repeatedly through the wet white paint.

Abstract Composition
Le Corbusier (Charles-Édouard Jeanneret) French, born Switzerland, 1887–1965

Untitled
Le Corbusier (Charles-Édouard Jeanneret) French, born Switzerland, 1887–1965

Chaise Longue
Le Corbusier (Charles-Édouard Jeanneret) French, born Switzerland, 1887-1965 Pierre Jeanneret Swiss, 1896-1967 Charlotte Perriand French, 1903-1999 Made by Embru-Werke, A.G. Rüti, Switzerland, founded 1904

Le Moduleur de Ville Determine les Volumes Batis, Presentation Sketches
Le Corbusier (Charles-Édouard Jeanneret) French, born Switzerland, 1887–1965