Piet MondrianDutch, 1872–1944Chrysanthemum
May one see it?
Not receiving at present
Cleveland, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
Fascinated by the complex structure of chrysanthemums, Mondrian painted these delicate flowers throughout his career. This single, frontal blossom recalls the stylized chrysanthemums of Japanese prints. Mondrian added the initials and date near the bottom edge sometime after painting the flower. Since he returned to this subject repeatedly, even during his later years, this painting may have been produced as late as 1942, the year Mondrian exhibited it in New York.
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Particulars
- Accession number
- 1958.38
In the catalog
Sources
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image: The Cleveland Museum of Art — Museum open access
Meanwhile, in the life of Piet Mondrian
The whole life1912–1914
Move to Paris
In 1912 Mondrian moved to Paris, where the Cubism of Picasso and Braque showed in his work almost at once: “The Sea” (1912) and his studies of trees from that year still keep a measure of representation but are increasingly dominated by geometric shapes and interlocking planes.
1913
The final break with representation
In 1913 Mondrian began to fuse his art and his theosophical studies into a theory that signalled his final break from representational painting.
1914
The war catches Mondrian in the Netherlands
While Mondrian was visiting the Netherlands in 1914, the First World War began, forcing him to stay there for the duration of the conflict; in isolation he began to create his own visual language, with works such as “Composition 10 in Black and White” (1915).
1915–1918
Founding De Stijl with Van Doesburg
With Theo van Doesburg Mondrian founded De Stijl, the journal of the De Stijl group, in which he first published essays defining his theory, which he called Neoplasticism.
23 September 1940
Sailing from Liverpool to New York
After the Netherlands were invaded and Paris fell, Mondrian left London and on 23 September 1940 sailed from Liverpool aboard the Cunard White Star liner RMS Samaria for New York, where he remained until his death.
1 February 1944
Died
