Rene Magritte The Schoolmaster

Lithograph, 2011

Limited edition of 275 (154/275)

Published by Artvalue (Luxembourg)

Printer: Philippe Moreno, Atelier Art-Lithographies (Paris)

60.00 cm × 45.00 cm (sheet size)

51.00 cm × 38.00 cm (image size)

Signed in the plate

Certificate of authenticity included

Condition: Excellent

Based on the original work "The Schoolmaster" from 1955

BFK Rives paper

With dry stamps of ADAGP and MAGRITTE Estate

Artwork Description

"The Schoolmaster" is a work that quietly questions the anonymity of human existence and the limits of perception through the iconic motif of the "man in a bowler hat," which René Magritte repeatedly depicted.

The figure seen from behind in the painting is a typical presence that frequently appears in Magritte's works. He is an ordinary urban gentleman in a black coat and bowler hat. Yet, due to his anonymity, he appears not as a specific individual but as a universal being reflecting all of us.

The figure stands quietly facing the urban landscape, but his expression cannot be seen.

This "unseen face" holds extremely significant meaning for Magritte.

A face usually reveals a person's individuality, emotions, and inner self. Here, however, this is thoroughly denied.

Magritte avoids giving explanations or answers to the viewer, but rather

What can one truly know in the face of the world?

He leaves only this question.

The urban landscape that the figure gazes at seems to symbolize the real world we live in, and a deep philosophical tension permeates this quiet confrontation.

"The Schoolmaster" is a contemplative work, characteristic of Magritte, that condenses the meaning of seeing, understanding, and existing into a simple composition.

Title Commentary

The Schoolmaster

It is important to note that this work does not literally depict a "teacher."

Magritte's titles are often given not to explain the image, but to challenge the viewer's interpretation.

Here, the word "Schoolmaster" evokes associations with:

• knowledge
• reason
• order
• teaching

However, the figure in the painting, far from teaching anything, merely gazes quietly at the world.

Through this discrepancy, the title can paradoxically be seen to suggest

a world that remains inexplicable even when one attempts to understand it.

In other words, this work contains Magritte's characteristic intellectual paradox, where

a teacher, who is supposed to be a "giver of knowledge," stands helpless before an inexplicable world.

This work, then, is imbued with Magritte's characteristic intellectual paradox.