René MagritteBelgian, 1898–1967The False Mirror
May one see it?
Yes, receiving visitors
The Museum of Modern Art
RoomMoMA, Floor 5, 517New York, United States
On public display.
- Checked
- 11 days ago
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the painting
The False Mirror is a surrealist oil on canvas painting by René Magritte, from 1929. It depicts a human eye framing a cloudy, blue sky. In the depiction of the eye in the painting, the clouds take the place normally occupied by the iris. The painting's original French title is Le faux miroir.
Particulars
- Accession number
- 133.1936
Sources
- The Museum of Modern Art: the museum's own open data · fetched 11 days ago
- Image: The Museum of Modern Art — © the artist or rights holder
Meanwhile, in the life of René Magritte
The whole life1927
Meets Breton and joins the Surrealist circle
In Paris he became friends with André Breton and joined his Surrealist circle, where he kept his individuality yet found his recognisable style. He was not afraid to argue with the others: he disliked psychoanalysis, especially in art, regarding his own work as philosophical and poetic rather than psychological.
1927
Moves to Paris after the failed exhibition
Depressed by the failure of the exhibition, he left for Paris with Georgette and stayed there for about three years.
1927
First solo exhibition — and a failure
His first solo exhibition opened in Brussels; the reviews were poor, and Magritte was depressed by the failure.
1929
A contract with the Goemans Gallery in Paris
In 1929 the Goemans Gallery in Paris put Magritte under contract, together with Jean Arp and Yves Tanguy.
15 December 1929
The essay “Words and Images” in the Surrealists’ journal
On 15 December 1929 the last issue, No. 12, of La Révolution surréaliste carried Magritte’s essay “Les mots et les images”, in which words play with images in step with his “The Treachery of Images”.
1930–1954 · Residence
René Magritte House
