The Railway Crossing

Fernand Léger

Informed and inspired by the fledgling Cubism of Picasso and Braque, Léger imbued the movement with a joyousness expressed in curvature and color. He saw machines and industrialisation as subjects just as important as people in his work, and the optimism he felt for the modern age is clear in every brushstroke. This was a study for a larger piece named ‘The Level Crossing’, and the scaffolding, tubular pipes, and signposts depicted take on an almost photo-pop art quality as the industrial workings of a train yard are transformed into a wonderland of bright shapes and shifting perspectives. Trains long represented the beginning of a new age, and in this study for what Léger would consider a portrait of sorts, he elevates the elder statesman of modernity into a beacon of hope for the future, and a triumph of the contemporary age.

Saturday 13th June

The Moon rises in Aries, carrying the warmth and impulse of fire, before quickly moving into Taurus, an earthly sign. This shift from fire into earth brings our attention downwards, towards the soil, the roots, and the hidden processes of transformation.In the biodynamic farm and garden, this is a good opportunity to pay attention to our compost piles. The compost heap is often placed front and centre, not hidden away as waste, but recognised as an integral organ of the farm organism. Here, decaying materials are gathered, layered, warmed and transformed into new fertility. Through compost, the garden learns to nourish itself. What has fallen, faded or finished is not lost, but carried through a process of renewal. In tending the compost, we take part in this quiet alchemy: turning endings into beginnings, and helping the earth prepare herself for new life.

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