Back 19 August 2017

Escher-Umiker family at Scheveningen, 1931

The holidays are a time for relaxing, fun and enjoyment. Not just for people living their hectic lives today, but also for M.C. Escher in his day. He rarely worked on his prints during the summer months. He visited Switzerland, France or Italy with his family, went on holidays with Jetta or one of his sons, or made sea trips with his wife or friends.

Escher-Umiker family in Scheveningen, July 1931

Or he went to visit the Netherlands, as is the case in this photograph which shows the young family relaxing on the beach in Scheveningen. It is the summer of 1931, Maurits and Jetta are living in Rome with their sons George (5) and Arthur (2½). During summer it is incredibly hot there, so they leave the city whenever they can. Earlier that summer, they were in Ravello and Switzerland, and during July/August, they spent time in the Netherlands. Maurits does meet with some business contacts, but there is definitely plenty of time left for relaxing.

Erik Kersten Editor

Announcement card for first solo exhibition

13 August 1923 saw Escher’s first solo exhibition open at the ‘Circolo Artistico’ in Siena. A milestone, but he paid very little attention to it. He was in love with Jetta Umiker and all his thoughts and actions were focused on her.

International Cat Day on Corsica

It is International Cat Day. That should lead to an abundance of cute cat movies, but we will mark the occasion by sharing a work by Escher. He depicted several cats (and catlike animals) in his linocuts and woodcuts, mainly in his younger years. Sometimes as a subject, sometimes as…

Mummified Frog

In August 1946 Escher created a mezzotint of a mummified frog. He rarely used this technique, despite the subtle nuances in tone it can achieve. The choice of both subject and composition are atypical for this period, in which he experiments with tessellations and geometrical shapes. He depicts the skeleton…

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