Theo van Doesburg, key figure of De Stijl movement and defiant defender of the European avant-garde

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1 Theo van Doesburg, key figure of De Stijl movement and defiant defender of the European avant-garde For the very first time in Belgium, this exhibition gives an overview of the multifaceted oeuvre of the Dutch artist Theo van Doesburg, key figure of the artistic movement De Stijl. The multidisciplinary oeuvre of Piet Mondrian s artistic ally is presented within the context of the most important international artistic trends he was involved in. With works by artists such as Theo van Doesburg, Piet Mondrian, Bart van der Leck, Kurt Schwitters, Georges Vantongerloo, Hans Arp, El Lissitzky, Victor Servranckx, Gerrit Rietveld, César Domela, Jean Hélion and Karel Maes. Theo van Doesburg A New Expression of Life, Art and Technology > The Dutch artist Theo van Doesburg ( ) worked as an artist, poet, writer, typographer, art theoretician, interior designer and architect. He started out with a decidedly multidisciplinary approach: he envisaged an art which intervened in all aspects of life and pursued the idea of the total work of art. During the First World War he was involved in the beginnings of one of Europe s most important artistic trends, De Stijl. In 1917 van Doesburg founded the art periodical of the same name, surrounding himself with like-minded artists, architects and designers: Piet Mondrian was undoubtedly the most well-known, but Bart van der Leck, J.J.P. Oud, Vilmos Huszár, Gerrit Rietveld and Georges Vantongerloo were also members of this collective. De Stijl, also known as The New Plastic Art or Neo- Plasticism, was all about an abstract geometric form language, characterised by the use of basic elements such as squares oblongs and the use of horizontal and vertical lines. The colour palette was restricted to primary colours such as blue, yellow and red and neutral colours such as white, black and Theo van Doesburg, Counter-Composition XIII, Oil on canvas, 49.9 x 50 cm Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice (Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York) grey. While the artists initially depicted reality according to the principles of De Stijl, they moved towards a form language of pure, autonomous, abstract forms. This new form language didn t just manifest itself in the visual arts, but also in other domains such as architecture, design, film, typography and graphic design. The members of De Stijl, spurred on by van Doesburg, worked towards a radical reorganisation of art, in interaction with society, science and technology. They dedicated themselves to the creation of an international style which would no longer be an expression of the individual but which would represent the universal. After the chaos and division of the First World War, there was a need for a new art which would lead to a new and better world. At the same time van Doesburg was interested in the latest developments in technology and science and was, for example, highly intrigued by Einstein s theory of relativity which enabled him to explore the concept of space-time. At this time interaction between art, technology and science was a visionary concept.

2 I.K. Bonset (Theo van Doesburg), Je suis contre tout et tous, 1921 Photography Under the dynamic leadership of Theo van Doesburg the ideas of De Stijl rapidly spread throughout Europe. He emerged as an energetic key figure of the European avant-garde. Van Doesburg was not a bohemian artist who worked in the solitude of his studio, au contraire. He wanted to exchange ideas, inspire and be inspired. During his short, but intense artistic existence he founded two magazines De Stijl and Mécano - and various artistic groups. As a missionary van Doesburg travelled around proclaiming his innovative ideas and surrounded himself with sympathisers. He took part in congresses, wrote pamphlets, organised exhibitions and encouraged exchanges of ideas with other artists. According to Gladys Fabre, curator of the exhibition, he was simply the right man in the right place. He was in the neutral Netherlands during the war where De Stijl was born in Leiden in During a stay in Paris in 1920 he joined the international art collective La Section d Or (Archipenko, Marthes Donas, Gleizes etc.). That same year he found himself in Berlin where he was intrigued by the graphic work and films of the Dadaists Viking Eggeling and Hans Richter. In 1921he moved to Weimar where Bauhaus was creating a furore. Van Doesburg infiltrated the Bauhaus movement and infected the students and teachers with his radical ideas, not entirely to the taste of founder Walter Gropius. During the Dusseldorf Congress of Progressive Artists (May 1922) he came into contact with the Russian Constructivist El Lissitzky, the Hungarian artist Moholy-Nagy and the Belgian painter Karel Maes. As of 1923 he settled in France, where he established the art collective Concrete Art in1930 that evolved into Abstraction-Création ( ) a few years before his death. Van Doesburg s radical, flamboyant personality and constantly evolving vision meant that he regularly entered into conflict with other artists and that the relations he had forged frequently came under pressure. Once he had written a new artist s manifesto he was often the first to question its presupposed rules. His friendship with Mondrian cooled off when van Doesburg wanted to introduce a greater dynamic in his work by means of diagonal compositions (Contra-compositions). This formed the basis for the new artistic trend Elementarism. Van Doesburg s revolutionary vision, his multidisciplinary aesthetic, his taste for dialogue and confrontation and his committed activism contributed to the worldwide acknowledgement and spread of The New Plastic Art and avantgarde art in general. Jean Hélion, Composition, 1932 Oil on canvas Musée de Grenoble

3 The exhibition The kaleidoscopic exhibition portrays Theo van Doesburg as a visionary artist and a fascinating personality. All the aspects of his multidisciplinary oeuvre are examined. Alongside this, the focus is also placed on the creative dynamic which reigned between the different artists of the avant-garde and the interplay between the various disciplines which came about as a result of it. The visitor is confronted with 140 paintings, drawings, photos, magazines, publications, items of furniture, scale models and stained glass windows by Theo van Doesburg and his artistic contemporaries. The exhibition is arranged in a thematic-chronological manner. It begins in 1917 with the art and body of thought relating to the Dutch movement De Stijl before following Van Doesburg s artistic career throughout Europe. There is a section dedicated to Dada and the artistic exchanges of I.K. Bonset - van Doesburg s pseudonym - with Dadaistic artists such as Kurt Schwitters, Jean Crotti Picabia, Raoul Haussman and Thijs Rinsema. Then there is a selection of early abstract films by, amongst others, Hans Richter and Viking Eggeling, as well as works by the avant-garde artists who inspired or collaborated with van Doesburg, ranging from constructivists such as El Lissitzky, pupils of the Bauhaus such as Karl Peter Röhl or Belgian artists like Victor Servranckx and Karel Maes. In the hall given over to the architecture from the later period of De Stijl, you can see the large-scale project for the Aubette building in Strasbourg. Theo van Doesburg, Hans Arp and Sophie Taeuber-Arp transformed the entire interior according to the new geometric principles. The 1:4 scale reconstruction of the cinema and dance hall designed by Doesburg promises to be a real highlight of the visit. Finally, there is a focus on new art collectives such as Elementarism and Concrete Art which were founded by van Doesburg. Georges Vantongerloo, Study I, Brussels, 1920 Tempera on paper and card MU.ZEE Oostende Gerrit Rietveld, Red and Blue Armchair, 1918 (design, manufacture unknown) Beechwood, plywood Centraal Museum Utrecht The exhibition has been put together with works of art from the collections of major Dutch museums, such as the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the Van Abbe museum in Eindhoven, the Central museum in Utrecht and the Stedelijk Museum de Lakenhal in Leiden. Numerous international museums such as the Guggenheim in Venice, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, The Winterthur Museum in Switzerland and the Galleria Nazionale d'arte Moderna in Rome also got involved, as did major art galleries and private collectors.

4 Curator Gladys Fabre Gladys Fabre is an art historian, curator and author, specialised in modernism and the avant-garde of the 20 th century. As a curator and scientific advisor she has been the driving force behind different international exhibitions in, amongst others, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and the United States. Recently she curated the exhibitions Roar China! Chinese Modernism around Lu Xun and Masereel (2009) at the Museum of Fine Arts Ghent, Van Doesburg and the International Avant-garde ( ) in the Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal in Leiden and the Tate Modern in London and Electromagnetic. Modern Art in Northern Europe , in Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, Norway and the Art museum of Estonia KUMU in Tallinn ( ). Dutch Presidency The exhibition is organised within the context of the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the European Union. At the same time as Theo van Doesburg. A New Expression of Life, Art and Technology the Centre for Fine Arts is also exhibiting a selection of 85 original etchings by the Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn: Rembrandt in Black & White. Theo van Doesburg, Counter-Composition V, 1924, Oil on canvas Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam Victor Servranckx, Opus 11 (Ciné), 1920 Gouache on paper, Private collection

5 Events around the exhibition of Theo van Doesburg RRRROM - THEO VAN DOESBURG REVISITED Film, music, performance & poetry , 8 pm In a boisterous evening packed with offbeat film, music, performance, and poetry, BOZAR turns the spotlight on the work of IK Bonset, the literary alter ego of the Dutch artist Theo van Doesburg. The sound artist Jaap Blonk sends his Dadaist verses hurtling through space and captures them on a 45 rpm record pressed specially for the occasion. Along the way, a musician will improvise on Van Doesburg's austere paintings. Avant-garde films from the 1920s will throw light on an exceptionally creative period of European art history. Tickets: 9 7 (BOZAR-friends) Co-production: deburen Partner: Uitgeverij Het balanseer FAMILY DAY (4+) around the exhibition of Theo van Doesburg , 10 am > 5 pm Bring your family to the BOZAR Family Day and enjoy a day full of culture for grandparents, parents and children. The theme of this year's Family Day is the Dutch artist Theo van Doesburg ( ) and the exhibition Theo van Doesburg. A New Expression of Life, Art and Technology will immerse you in his artistic universe. Creative workshops all over the Centre for Fine Arts give your children the chance to make colourful collages and experiment with shapes and colours from the 1920s. Tickets: 10 8 (BOZAR-friends) - 6 (6 >12 years) (Entrance to the exhibition is included in the ticket) Support: Nationale Loterij Loterie Nationale, ENGIE Foundation DISCOVERY TRAILS WITH THE FAMILY :30 pm > 4 pm :30 pm > 4 pm You re probably familiar with Piet Mondrian s red, yellow and blue rectangles, but did you know that he and the Dutch artist Theo van Doesburg came up with a new awareness of beauty? Find out more about this colourful imagery during the family visit and go on a journey to the beginning of the twentieth century in the company of the children's guide. You will discover that his brightly coloured planes and lines don't just crop up in paintings, but can also be found in buildings, garments, furniture and interiors. Tickets: (BOZAR-friends)- 6 (6 >12 years) Production: BOZAR STUDIOS Support: Vlaamse Gemeenschap, Nationale Bank van België Banque Nationale de Belgique, Nationale Loterij Loterie Nationale, ENGIE (France), ENGIE Foundation

6 PRACTICAL INFORMATION Theo van Doesburg A New Expression of Life, Art and Technology > BOZAR Centre for Fine Arts, Rue Ravenstein 23, 1000 Brussels Open: Tuesday to Sunday: 10 am > 6 pm (Thursday: 10 am > 9 pm) Closed: Monday PRICES Tickets: 10-8 (BOZAR-friends) Combitickets: Theo van Doesburg + Daniel Buren: (BOZAR-friends) Theo van Doesburg + Rembrandt: (BOZAR-friends) Visitor guide: 2-1 (BOZAR-friends) Audioguide adults: 3 Audioguide children: Free with entrance ticket to the exhibition CATALOGUS Theo van Doesburg Editor: Fonds Mercator & BOZAR BOOKS 3 separate editions: FR / NL / ENG 288 pag., hardcover, 24 x 31 cm BOZAR INFO & TICKETS info@bozar.be PRESS CONTACT leen.daems@bozar.be - T M