Bookplate M.C. Escher
1917
Medium
linoleum cut on brown wove paper
Dimensions
block: 10.8 × 7 cm (4 1/4 × 2 3/4 in.) sheet: 18.6 x 15.8 cm (7 5/16 x 6 1/4 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Cornelius Van S. Roosevelt Collection
Accession Number
1983.109.87
Art Historical Context
**Bookplate M.C. Escher (1917)**Created by the young M.C. Escher age 19, this linoleum cut served as a personal bookplate ex-libris label designed to mark book ownership with artistic flair. Produced during Escher's student years at the School for and Decorative Arts inlem, Netherlands, it his early experimentation with printmaking amid the cultural ferment of World War I Europe. Bookplates like this were cherished by intellectuals and collectors, blending utility with personal expression. The medium, linoleum cut on brown wove paper, highlights a modern relief printing technique that emerged...
About the Artist
M.C. Escher
Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972) was a Dutch graphic artist renowned for his mathematically-inspired woodcuts, lithographs, and mezzotints featuring impossible constructions, tessellations, and explorations of infinity. Though he considered himself lacking in mathematical ability, Escher's work demonstrates profound intuitive understanding of geometry, symmetry, and spatial paradox. A transform...