Famous artist René Magritte, leader of Belgian surrealism, died on the 15th of August 1967. Expositions and other activities will be organized in Belgium throughout this year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his death.
Born in Lessines in 1898, Magritte studied at the Brussels Academy of Fine Art. First influenced by cubism, he quickly became an icon of the surrealist movement, playing on the gap between objects and their representation. His seminal works include the huge fresco with which he decorated the Knokke-le-Zoute casino between 1951 and 1953. At his death in 1967, his widow bequeathed his over 1,000 paintings, gouaches and collages to public collections in Belgium.
Throughout the year, activities will be held in honour of the painter.
In Brussels, the Royal Museums of Fine Art of Belgium will offer an exposition under the theme of “Magritte is alive” from the 13th of October 2017 to the 18th of February 2018.This expo will highlight his influence on contemporary art.
From the 1st of September 2017 to the 30th of January 2018, the Magritte Museum, which has over 200 of his works, will offer a thematic exposition focusing on painter and art critic Marcel Lecomte’s view of his friend, Rene Magritte.
Activities will also be organized in taverns and pubs often frequented by Magritte and his peers, such as the ‘Greenwich’, where he played chess with his friends and “La fleur en papier doré’ (The Golden Paper Flower), a real landmark for 20th Century surrealists like Louis Scutenaire and Marcel Marien.
Other venues include Magritte’s home in Jette, the commune where he resided from 1930 to 1956 and where he painted many of his masterpieces, and the Atomium, which will devote an expo to the renowned Belgian painter.
In Knokke, the huge bowler hat is hosting tourists up to the 3rd of September on the beach: After that, the seaside town’s cultural center will offer an exposition highlighting Magritte’s relationship with the sea.
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The Brussels Times
