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The Arts Intel Report

Mondrian Evolution

Piet Mondrian, Tree, 1912.

June 5 – Oct 9, 2022
Baselstrasse 101, 4125 Basel, Switzerland

The history of painting is paralleled by Piet Mondrian’s own development, which moved from figuration to abstraction. Although his work feels up-to-the-minute, Mondrian was born 150 years ago, in 1872, and founded a movement called De Stijl (The Style) in 1917. In the 1920s, in Paris, he began creating his mature works, rectilinear arrangements that painstakingly distilled the universe into black lines and primary colors. When fascism rose across Europe, Mondrian traveled to London and then to New York, where he stayed until his death in 1944. This exhibition focuses on Mondrian’s late paintings—dancing machines in red, blue, yellow, black, and white. —Elena Clavarino

Photo: Staatsgalerie/© 2022 Mondrian/Holtzman Trust