November 13, 2016

2865 BELGIUM (Brussels) - René Magritte Museum

2865 René Magritte Museum

The Belgian René Magritte (René François Ghislain Magritte; 1898-1967) was one of the most important Surrealist artists, well known for his witty and thought-provoking images. Often depicting ordinary objects in an unusual context, his work is known for challenging observers' preconditioned perceptions of reality. His imagery has influenced pop, minimalist and conceptual art. Contemporary artists have been greatly influenced by René Magritte's stimulating examination of the fickleness of images.

Born in Lessines, he was the son of Léopold Magritte, a tailor and textile merchant, and Régina, who committed suicide in 1912, after several unsuccessful attempts. Magritte's earliest paintings, which date from about 1915, were Impressionistic in style, but between 1918 and 1924 he was influenced by Futurism and by the figurative Cubism of Metzinger. In 1922 he married Georgette Berger, who became his model and muse, and until 1926 he worked as draughtsman and as advertisement designer.

In 1926, Magritte produced his first surreal painting, The Lost Jockey, and in 1927 held his first exhibition in Brussels, which was a failure. He moved then to Paris, where became friends with André Breton, involving in the surrealist group, and becoming a leading member of the movement. In 1930 he returned to Brussels and resumed working in advertising. During the German occupation of Belgium in WWII he remained in Brussels, which led to a break with Breton.

In 1946, he renounced the violence and pessimism of his earlier work, and joined several other Belgian artists in signing the manifesto Surrealism in Full Sunlight. However, at the end of 1948 he returned to the style and themes of his prewar surrealistic art. The popular interest in Magritte's work rose considerably in the 1960s. The René Magritte Museum was opened in 1999 on a house located in Brussels, on Esseghem street 135, where the painter lived from 1930 until 1954, i.e. much longer than in all his other lodgings together.

The autor of the photo presented in the postcard is Roland D'Ursel (1926-2006), who become professional photographer in 1947. From 1948 to 1952 he produced a series of Artist’s portraits, after Madam Nadine Effront provided him introductions to the most famous artists of that period in Belgium and France, among who was René Magritte. The exhibition "Portraits d'artistes" occurred at the Musée de la Photographie in Charleroi, and later at the Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels.

About the stamps


The stamps are part of the series Magritte: This is a stamp, designed by Myriam Voz and issued on September 6, 2014. All ten stamps have the same face value (0.70 EUR).
4430 - Stem van het bloed (1961) - It's on the postcard 2865
4431 - Portret van Adriennet Crovet (1940)
4432 - Het verraad van de voorstelling (1929)
4433 - Golconda (1953) - It's on the postcard 2865
4434 - De grote familie (1963)
4435 - Ontdekking (1927)
4436 - Domein va Arnheim (1962)
4437 - Het rijk der lichten (1954)
4438 - De persoonlijke waarden (1952)
4439 - De borst (1961)

References
René Magritte - Wikipedia
René Magritte Museum - Official website
Roland D'Ursel - Art Factor

Sender: Pumipat
Sent from Brussels (Brussels / Belgium), on 29.10.2016
Photo: Roland D'Ursel / 1950

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