Composition in White, Black, and Red

1919–1938

Return to Paris

In 1919 Mondrian left the Netherlands for Paris for the second and last time and at once turned to his studio: to hide its flaws he tacked large single-colour placards to the walls, accented by compositions of smaller coloured paper rectangles. From then on, periods of painting alternated with experiments in regrouping the papers on the walls.

1930s

Double lines, influenced by Marlow Moss

In the 1930s Mondrian began to use thinner and double lines more often, punctuated by a few small coloured forms; the double line, in which he saw a new dynamism, was influenced by the work of his friend and contemporary Marlow Moss.

1934–1935

The “Abstract and Concrete” exhibitions in Britain

Three of Mondrian's paintings were shown in the “Abstract and Concrete” exhibitions at Oxford, London and Liverpool.

September 1938

Moves to London to escape advancing fascism

In September 1938 Mondrian left Paris in the face of advancing fascism and moved to London (Hampstead); many canvases begun in Paris or London were finished only months or years later in Manhattan.