Magritte's defiance of common sense set in stone...

Newsflash!!!
(For all Magritte fans this is pretty major!)
  • 2500 m2.
  • 5 levels.
  • World's largest collection of the 20th century's most important Belgian painter.
  • The world reference centre for knowledge about Magritte.
  • 650,000 visitors expected yearly.

The Altenloh Hotel Brussels. Front of Museum covered with a hoarding during the restoration.


Impressive figures.
Impressive artist.

René François Ghislain Magritte (1898-1967)

On June the 2nd 2009, the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, in collaboration with the Magritte Foundation and the support of GDF SUEZ and the Régie des Bâtiments, will proudly open (and rightly so) the “Musée Magritte Museum”.


Rene Magritte was born on the 21st of November 1898, in Lessine Belgium. Dying, in Brussels, 69 years later: on the 15th of August 1967, victim of pancreatic cancer.

Magritte considered his work to be an attack on society's preconceived ideas, a permanent revolt against the banal -the common place.

Below a sprinkling of samples of his work, his "war on the ordinary".


"Le Domaine D'Arnheim - The Domaine of Arnheim"
 Oil on Canvas, 146x114 cm
Magritte,1962


"La Condition Humaine -The Human condition"
Oil on canvas. 100 x 81 cm.
Magritte,1933
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA.



"Perspective (Le Balcon de Manet) - Perspective (Manet's Balcony)"
Oil on canvas, 81x60 cm
Magritte, 1950
Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst, Ghent, Belgium


"Golconde"
Oil on Canvas, 81x100 cm
Magritte, 1953
The Menil Collection, Houston, TX, USA

"Le Modele Rouge - The Red Model"
Oil on Cardboard, 183x136 cm
Magritte,1934
Museum van Boymans von Beunigen, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.



"La Boite a Pandore - Pandora's Box"
Oil on Canvas, 45.5x55 cm.
Magritte, 1951

"Les Liaisons Dangereuses- The Dangerous Liaison"
Oil on Canvas. 72 x 64 cm.
Magritte, 1926
Private collection.

"Les Amants - The Lovers"
Oil on Canvas, 54x73 cm
Magritte. 1928
Private collection.

"Le Tombeau des Lutteurs - The Tomb of the Wrestlers"
Oil on Canvas, 89x117 cm
Magritte 1960


"Le Viol - The Rape"
65x54 cm
Magritte, 1945

"La Saveur des Larmes - The Flavour of Tears"
(76x116 cm) Oil on Canvas.
Magritte, 1948
Private Collection



"La Legende des Siecles - The Legend of Centuries"
Gouache, 21x15.5 cm
Magritte 1950
Private collection.

"La Corde Sensible - Heartstring"
Oil on Canvas, 112x145 cm
Magritte, 1955
Private Collection


"L'art de la Conversation - The Art of Conversation"
(65x80cm) Oil on Canvas.
Magritte,1950
Private collection.
"L'Empire des Lumieres II - The Empire of Lights II"
Oil on Canvas, 79x99 cm Magritte, 1950
The Museum of Modern Art, New York



"Prêtre marié- Married Priest"

46 X 55 cm - Oil on Canvas

Magritte 1961

sold for $27,357,226/£14,020,000 at auction

Christie's, London - 6 feb 2007



"Le Chateau des Pyrenees - The Castle of the Pyrenees"
Oil on canvas, 200x140 cm.
 Magritte 1959

Magritte: synonym of images concealing nothing, defying common sense and raising strong emotions from deep within...
The things he didn't see are there and the things he did see aren't ...
Food for thought.

Sources

"Magritte", Flammarion, 1977

"Magritte", Suzi Gablik, 1970

"avec Magritte" Louis Scutenaire, Le Fil Rouge,  1977

Wikipedia

The Magritte Site

The Magritte Foundation

Olga's Gallery

Artcyclopedia

Comments

An English Shepherd said…
René Magritte created some very interesting and thought provoking art.

Wizz :-)
9:56 pm
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