In-text plate (folios 3 verso and 4) from La Fin du monde filmée par l'ange de N.-D. (The End of the World Filmed by the Angel of Notre Dame)

The In-text plate (folios 3 verso and 4) from La Fin du monde filmée par l'ange de N.-D. (The End of the World Filmed by the Angel of Notre Dame) is a key component of a landmark illustrated book created by Fernand Léger in 1919. This work marks Léger’s early and highly influential exploration of book illustration, providing a crucial visual counterpart to the textual narrative. Created in Paris, this French volume reflects the artist's engagement with Cubism and the visual language of modern, mechanized life immediately following World War I.

The technique utilized for this plate is a sophisticated combination of line block and pochoir. The line block provides the underlying structure: thick, graphic black outlines characteristic of Léger’s paintings from the period, defining figures and architectural elements with clarity. Overlaying this structure is the pochoir, a hand-stenciling method that allowed for the application of flat, bold fields of color. This plate is drawn from an illustrated book that contained twenty-two pochoirs in total, with six specifically employing the line block base. The resulting image is dynamic, embracing the industrial aesthetic that would define Léger's subsequent career, using geometry and fragmented perspective to suggest movement and simultaneity.

Classified as an Illustrated Book, La Fin du monde filmée par l'ange de N.-D. solidified Léger’s importance among the avant-garde, demonstrating how prints and reproducible media could carry the weight of serious artistic endeavor. The quality and rarity of the original edition make this work highly valuable. This significant example of early twentieth-century French Modernism is held within the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, ensuring its preservation and availability for scholarly review. While the original book is rarely handled, associated prints and images derived from the work are often made available through public domain initiatives, supporting global access to the output of this major artist.