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Leuk 5 by Laszlo Moholy-Nagy / American Art
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Leuk 5

1946 Laszlo Moholy-Nagy Born: Bacsbarsod, Hungary 1895 Died: Chicago, Illinois 1946 oil and pencil on canvas 30 1/4 x 38 in. (76.9 x 96.5 cm.) Smithsonian American Art Museum Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost 1986.92.66 Smithsonian American Art Museum
4th Floor, Luce Foundation Center



Hear more about
Leuk 5



Hear more about
Leuk 5
from American Art staff



Leuk 5 evokes several different meanings, all of which may have had significance for László Moholy-Nagy. “Leuk” can mean light or brightness, which relates to his lifelong exploration of light and color in art and reflects the glowing hues in the image. It can also mean white, as in leukemia (white blood), which killed the artist in November 1946. The red and white ovals suggest blood cells, and the small black shape evokes an abnormal or cancerous cell. If so, then Moholy-Nagy might have magnified these microscopic particles to show how just a few tiny molecules can have a devastating effect on our bodies.

For more information about this work visit the Luce Foundation Center.


Keywords

Abstract

painting

paint - oil

pencil

fabric - canvas

About Laszlo Moholy-Nagy

Born: Bacsbarsod, Hungary 1895 Died: Chicago, Illinois 1946

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