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the museum of friesland presents a grand m.c. escher exhibition in 2018

From 28 April 2018, the Museum of Friesland presents the comprehensive exhibitionEscher’s journey. About 80 original prints will come to Leeuwarden, the birthplace of M.C. Escher, which is the European Capital of Culture 2018. The exhibition shows his development from a technically skilled graphic designer to a world-renowned artist and can be seen until 28 October 2018.

Escher’s journey makes the development of M.C. Escher as a visual artist tangible. The places where he lived played a major role in his artistry: from the gray flat Netherlands of the 1910s to the sun and mountains of the Mediterranean. On the basis of about 80 original works, supplemented by letters, drawings, photographs and personal objects, visitors walk in M.C. Escher’s footsteps. The innovative exhibition design enhances the experience of Escher’s life and work. Online ticket sales start on 1 December 2017; note that tickets are for a specific date and time slot.

the journeys of m.c. escher

Maurits Cornelis Escher was born in 1898 in the city palace of Leeuwarden, which is where the Princessehof National Museum of Ceramics is now located. As a young artist, M.C. Escher went to Italy, where he spent his happiest years. A series of prints of Italian villages and his dark portrayals of Rome at night demonstrate that under the influence of the landscape he experimented with striking perspectives and image compilations. Back in the Netherlands, he converted all these experiences and impressions into complex mathematical images and impossible worlds. An Italian mountain landscape can be seen in the background in the world-famous Belvedere, and the port city of Atrani is treated inMetamorphosis II. Of course, Escher’s iconic tessellations, metamorphoses, perspectives and impossibilities will be displayed in the exhibition. His top pieces are so much more than graphic feats; they are montages of elements from different periods in his colourful life.

collaborations

For this exhibition the Museum of Friesland is working closely with the M.C. Escher Stichting Baarn, Gemeentemuseum Den Haag (Escher in the Palace), Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and filmmaker Robin Lutz. XPEX Amsterdam is designing the exhibition.

2018 = escher in the museum of friesland

In 2018, the city of Leeuwarden will be transformed into an Escher wonderland. In addition to a major exhibition of his work, from 26 January 2018 the Museum of Friesland will present the exhibition Phantom Limb: Art beyond Escher, with impressive installations by contemporary national and international artists. These installations mislead viewers and take them into a world where nothing is what it seems. The objective observation of reality is called into question, much as Escher did with his work. In addition, under the rubricPlanet Escher the Museum is organising projects in the province throughout the year, bringing together various groups within the community, with Escher as a binding factor.

The exhibition ‘Escher’s Journey’ is made possible by ING, the Blockbuster Fund, the Mondriaan Fund, the Municipality of Leeuwarden, St. Anthony Gasthuis, De Haan Advocaten & Notarissen, Leeuwarden-Fryslân European Capital of Culture 2018, Aegon, Fryslân Province and the BankGiro Lottery.

The Museum of Friesland is co-financed by the Ir. Abe Bonnema Stichting, Provinsje Fryslân, the Samenwerkingsverband Noord-Nederland, EZ/Kompas, the BankGiro Loterij and Aegon.

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