Bejoux Indiscrets, Color Lithograph
The Belgian Surrealist painter René Magritte was born in Lessines, Hainaut. He studied at the Académie des Beaux-Arts, Brussels (1916 - 18). His work from 1920 to 1924—in its treatment of themes of modern life, its bright color, and its exploration of the relationship of three-dimensional form to flat picture plane—shows the combined influence of Cubism, Orphism, Futurism, and Purism. But in 1925, Magritte was profoundly moved by reproductions of the Metaphysical paintings of de Chirico and abandoned his earlier manner. In such works as The Robe of Adventure (1926; private collection), which owe much to de Chirico and to Ernst's work of 1921 to 1924, he expressed his sense of the mystery of the world by means of abrupt, irrational juxtapositions of objects and the evocation of a silent, trance-like atmosphere.
"Magritte René (1898 - 1967)." A Biographical Dictionary of Artists, Andromeda. London: Andromeda, 1995. Credo Reference. Web. 11 October 2012.
Dialogues Des Courtosames, Lithograph
French sculptor. He studied painting and sculpture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris (1882–6). He was associated with the Nabis as a painter and tapestry designer and did not concentrate solely on sculpture until c. 1897, when his sight was failing. His early works (wood carvings and terracotta statuettes) provided the basis of his later sculpture, most of which was cast in bronze. He was influenced at first by Rodin (the 2 men shared a mutual respect), but his mature treatment of the figure, strengthened by a visit to Greece in 1906, has a sensuality which is closer to classical art than to Rodin's expressive and sometimes erotic Romanticism. Maillol's whole œuvre is built round the female nude. His most original work (c. 1898–1910) is important for its renewed respect for mass after the fluid surface richness of Rodin and the Impressionist sculpture of artists like M. Rosso. Torso (1906) is typical in its massive simplicity of closed form with a strong sense of a contained dynamic energy. After 1910 his work was relatively uninventive and ranges from the prosaic stylization of his Memorial to Cézanne (1912–25) to the rather theatrical quality of symbolic figures such as Air and River (1939–43).
"Maillol, Aristide (1861 - 1944)." The Thames & Hudson Dictionary of Art and Artists. London: Thames & Hudson, 1994. Credo Reference. Web. 11 October 2012.
Quebec, Etching 73/300
Oiseau Solaire II, Color Lithography
Joan Miró was a Spanish painter, ceramist, and sculptor, and a leading member of the Surrealist movement. Born in Barcelona, he at first hesitated between art and business studies, but in 1912, after a serious breakdown, he enrolled in Francesco Galí's School of Art in Barcelona, where he was introduced to avant-garde French art. His paintings of 1914 show a highly original amalgam of Post-Impressionist, Fauve, and Cubist influences. Several landscapes painted in 1918 are reminiscent of Persian miniatures in their precision of line, decorative treatment of flat areas of color, and patterning of forms.
"Miró Joan (1893 - 1983)." A Biographical Dictionary of Artists, Andromeda. London: Andromeda, 1995. Credo Reference. Web. 11 October 2012.