Julie Waseige Livres

Magritte in 400 images offers a selection of the most iconic paintings from the master Surrealist, René Magritte, along with a multitude of perhaps less well-known, but no less exciting jewels from his expansive oeuvre. The novel choice of works will surprise and delight the reader as they continue to uncover ever more facets of the celebrated painter, from his gouaches to his painted bottles and much more. Spanning seven chapters, this book brings together the myriad aspects of Magritte's pictorial vision. Beginning with his first forays into abstract painting in the 1920s, navigating his search for solace in his Sunlit Period, as well as his brittle période vache and moving on to his Surrealist masterpieces of the 1950s and 1960s, it gently guides the reader through Magritte's world. Each chapter opens with a summary of the artistic stakes at play during that period and Magritte's place in them, immersing the reader in the contemporary artistic milieu. The 400 reproductions of Magritte's work are complemented by a unique selection of historical photographs. Alive with images and information, this compact gem is a must-have for all art enthusiasts and connoisseurs.

René Magritte used paper to explore his ideas. His visual language emerged from the sketches he made in the corners of letters or notepads. His ideas germinated in correspondence. The gouache versions he made of existing oil paintings added a new facet to the works. And his commercial illustrations taught him to assess the effect of images. Paper was a source of joy. Unlike his oil paintings, which required meticulousness and patience, paper was a medium where he could let his ideas run free. Especially in his correspondence, drawings, collages and gouaches, he tried new approaches. From sketches to raster drawings, from scribbles in his letters to book illustrations, and from preparatory sketches to finished paintings, drawing formed the core of his work. This aspect of Magritte's oeuvre is rarely examined, although it lies at the heart of his painting. His drawings give us a better understanding of how his ideas evolved. This comprehensive publication brings together for the first time more than 200 works on paper by René Magritte, most of which have remained unpublished.