CaixaForum Barcelona hosts "The Magritte Machine"

The ”la Caixa” Foundation, in collaboration with the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, presents La màquina Magritte , a monographic exhibition dedicated to the work of René Magritte (Lessines, 1898 - Brussels, 1967), the famous Belgian artist of the twentieth century. The exhibition, which can be seen at CaixaForum Barcelona from 25 February to 6 June, proposes an immersion in the creative and enigmatic universe of the Belgian artist, who defined his painting as “an art of thinking” capable of make the singular visible through paradox, and whose messages are still valid today.

The exhibition, curated by Guillermo Solana, brings together 69 unique paintings from museums and collections from various countries, such as The Waterfall, High Society, Attempt at the Impossible and The Sense of Reality , which can only be seen at CaixaForum Barcelona, ​​and will be completed with a selection of photographs and home movies made by the same artist.

In 1950, in collaboration with some friends, Magritte wrote the pamphlet La Manufacture de Poésie, a catalog of imaginary products, including the "Universal Painting Machine." This machine would make it possible to compose practically an unlimited number of thinking paintings. The exhibition is based on the hypothesis that the Magritte Machine exists and consists of several interconnected devices that correspond to recurring concepts in the artist's work, such as mimicry and megalomania. The very title of the exhibition, The Magritte Machine, aims to be a reflection of how the themes that obsessed him were repeated over and over again in his paintings, with innumerable variations. With this exhibition, visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the universe created by the Belgian painter, where ingenuity and provocation are a constant for the viewer to question the reality around him and reflect on it.

René Magritte is, without a doubt, one of the most influential surrealist artists in the avant-garde painting of the 20th century. Unlike other surrealists, Magritte was not only based on the world of dreams, but also analyzed reality by questioning it from top to bottom and playing with visual logic. He was very interested in the ambiguity of images and words, as well as in investigating the strange relationship between the painted and the real. That's why I always tried to explore the magic of everyday life. And it is that his is the painting of the bewilderment and the ambiguity, that more than to give us answers always leaves us doubting and to the loose rope of the perceptions. Influenced by Giorgio de Chirico, he painted mysterious landscapes and absolutely striking and ingenious images, with hidden meanings, silence and a great sense of humor.