Most of us associate surrealism with Salvador Dali, and rightly so. However, there is another extraordinary artist involved in the surrealism movement during the 20th century. René Magritte is a Belgian born artist whose works were both thought provoking and amusing. The Museum of Modern Art is currently displaying an amazing exhibit titled Magritte: The Mystery of the Ordinary, which showcases his work between the years of 1926 and 1938. This exhibit is the first to focus exclusively on the artist, bringing together 80 paintings, collages, objects, periodicals and more.
The popular exhibit will be housed at the MoMA until January 12, 2014, at which time it will move on to The Menil Collection, followed by The Art Institute of Chicago. While it is still in New York, you should definitely make it a priority to see. Viewers can see many of the themes that often recur in surrealist art, such as displacement, transformation, and displaying ordinary objects in an unusual context. Magritte also had a habit of ‘misnaming’ objects in his works and used many themes over and over again. Some of his earlier works utilized multimedia, which were very interesting to look at. Make sure to carve out quite a bit of time from your schedule as walking through the exhibit will take at least an hour if it’s not crowded.
Not only are Magritte’s works of art fabulous and fascinating to look at, but their titles are just as interesting as the paintings themselves. Sometimes looking at the art and then seeing it’s name can give you a whole new perspective on what you are seeing. Additionally, the descriptions that go along with the exhibit are both intriguing and informative, giving the exhibit even more meaning.
The Museum of Modern Art is also holding lectures, gallery talks and art classes all related to the exhibit. If you like mystery and peculiarity as much as I do, you will love this exhibit.
The Museum of Modern Art is located at 11 W. 53rd Street.
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