Brief Biography
Full name Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972), was born in Leeuwarden, Holland. The Dutch artist was a draftsman, book illustrator, tapestry designer, and muralist, but his primary work was as a printmaker. During his lifetime the artist has made 448 lithographs, woodcuts and wood engravings and over 2000 drawings and sketches. He was born as the fourth and youngest son of a civil engineer and failed his high school exams, however enrolled in the School for Architecture and Decorative Arts in Haarlem. Escher plays with architecture, perspective and impossible spaces. “I believe that producing pictures, as do I do, is almost solely a question of wanting so very much to do it well” – M.C. Escher.
Analysis
The Hand with Reflecting Sphere, created by M.C. Escher in 1935, is created in the form of a lithograph. The artwork depicts Escher grasping a …show more content…
The depth of the subject matter is enigmatic as the audience could interpret it with different narratives. The subtle tones of black and white give the artwork a relative indicator of distance of the interior of the sphere. The light coming from the window at the back of the room creates shadows on Escher’s face and tone, establishing depth, as it also highlights the furniture and objects.
Notably, the mirror brings forth a visual illusion with the reflection, as the point between his eyes are in the absolute centre of the artwork, and the viewer will always see him as the central point of the image. Escher evinces the polarity of reality and fantasy through his use of reflection in his artwork.
Escher’s artwork is captivating and thought-provoking, it cannot be helped that the artwork engrosses viewers, as the artist uses his compositional elements to form a profound meaning behind the artwork, as the artist himself says “the things I want to express are so beautiful and pure”, it can be agreed upon.
Full name Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972), was born in Leeuwarden, Holland. The Dutch artist was a draftsman, book illustrator, tapestry designer, and muralist, but his primary work was as a printmaker. During his lifetime the artist has made 448 lithographs, woodcuts and wood engravings and over 2000 drawings and sketches. He was born as the fourth and youngest son of a civil engineer and failed his high school exams, however enrolled in the School for Architecture and Decorative Arts in Haarlem. Escher plays with architecture, perspective and impossible spaces. “I believe that producing pictures, as do I do, is almost solely a question of wanting so very much to do it well” – M.C. Escher.
Analysis
The Hand with Reflecting Sphere, created by M.C. Escher in 1935, is created in the form of a lithograph. The artwork depicts Escher grasping a …show more content…
The depth of the subject matter is enigmatic as the audience could interpret it with different narratives. The subtle tones of black and white give the artwork a relative indicator of distance of the interior of the sphere. The light coming from the window at the back of the room creates shadows on Escher’s face and tone, establishing depth, as it also highlights the furniture and objects.
Notably, the mirror brings forth a visual illusion with the reflection, as the point between his eyes are in the absolute centre of the artwork, and the viewer will always see him as the central point of the image. Escher evinces the polarity of reality and fantasy through his use of reflection in his artwork.
Escher’s artwork is captivating and thought-provoking, it cannot be helped that the artwork engrosses viewers, as the artist uses his compositional elements to form a profound meaning behind the artwork, as the artist himself says “the things I want to express are so beautiful and pure”, it can be agreed upon.