M. C. Escher
M.C. Escher: A Life of Mirrors, Mathematics, and Artistic Genius
Full Name and Common Aliases
Maurits Cornelis Escher was born on June 17, 1898, in Leeuwarden, Netherlands. He is commonly referred to as M.C. Escher.
Birth and Death Dates
June 17, 1898 – March 27, 1972
Nationality and Profession(s)
Dutch artist, printmaker, and mathematician
Early Life and Background
M.C. Escher's early life was marked by a fascination with art and mathematics. As the youngest of four children to a civil engineer, Escher's family encouraged his creative pursuits. His mother, Marie van Eyle, was an accomplished artist in her own right, teaching Escher how to draw and paint from a young age. At 11 years old, Escher suffered a severe bout of pneumonia that left him partially deaf. This disability would later influence his artistic style.
Major Accomplishments
Escher's artistic career spanned six decades, during which he produced over 2,000 prints and woodcuts. He is renowned for his innovative use of tessellations – repeating patterns of shapes that fit together without overlapping. His work often explored the relationship between mathematics and art, incorporating concepts from geometry and perspective.
Notable Works or Actions
Some of Escher's most notable works include:
"Day and Night" (1938): A lithograph featuring a landscape that transitions seamlessly from day to night.
"Waterfall" (1961): A woodcut depicting a staircase that descends into infinity, creating the illusion of a continuous water flow.
* "Ascending and Descending" (1960): A lithograph showcasing a never-ending procession of identical figures climbing or descending stairs.
Impact and Legacy
Escher's contributions to art and mathematics have been profound. His exploration of tessellations has inspired artists, designers, and mathematicians worldwide. The Escher Museum in the Netherlands, dedicated to his life and work, attracts visitors from around the globe. Additionally, his innovative use of perspective has influenced the development of computer graphics and animation.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
M.C. Escher's artistic genius lies in his ability to merge art and mathematics, creating visually stunning works that continue to captivate audiences today. His legacy extends beyond the world of art, influencing fields such as design, architecture, and even music. As a true pioneer, Escher's work remains an inspiration for anyone seeking to push the boundaries between creativity and innovation.
"The more I travel through the world, the more I realize that there is nothing but surfaces."
— M.C. Escher
Quotes by M. C. Escher
Hands, are the most honest part of the human body, they cannot lie as laughing eyes and the mouth can.
Science and art sometimes can touch one another, like two pieces of the jigsaw puzzle which is our human life, and that contact may be made across the boderline between the two respective domains.
So let us then try to climb the mountain, not by stepping on what is below us, but to pull us up at what is above us, for my part at the stars; amen.
I try in my prints to testify that we live in a beautiful and orderly world, not in a chaos without norms, even though that is how it sometimes appears. My subjects are also often playful: I cannot refrain from demonstrating the nonsensicalness of some of what we take to be irrefutable certainties. It is, for example, a pleasure to deliberately mix together objects of two and three dimensions, surface and spatial relationships, and to make fun of gravity.
I never got a pass mark in math ... Just imagine - mathematicians now use my prints to illustrate their books.
I think I have never yet done any work with the aim of symbolizing a particular idea, but the fact that a symbol is sometimes discovered or remarked upon is valuable for me because it makes it easier to accept the inexplicable nature of my hobbies, which constantly preoccupy me.
![In mathematical quarters, the regular division of the plane has been considered theoretically. ... [Mathematicians] have opened the gate leading to an extensive domain, but they have not entered this domain themselves. By their very nature they are more interested in the way in which the gate is opened than in the garden lying behind it.](/_vercel/image?url=https:%2F%2Flakl0ama8n6qbptj.public.blob.vercel-storage.com%2Fquotes%2Fquote-1395432.png&w=1536&q=100)
In mathematical quarters, the regular division of the plane has been considered theoretically. ... [Mathematicians] have opened the gate leading to an extensive domain, but they have not entered this domain themselves. By their very nature they are more interested in the way in which the gate is opened than in the garden lying behind it.
I can't keep from fooling around with our irrefutable certainties. It is, for example, a pleasure knowingly to mix up two and three dimensionalities, flat and spatial, and to make fun of gravity.
To have peace with this peculiar life; to accept what we do not understand; to wait calmly for what awaits us, you have to be wiser than I am.