- The experts now believe that the artwork New York City I made by the Dutch abstract artist Piet Mondrian has been the wrong way up for decades.
- The picture was created in 1941 and first put on display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1945.
- Curator Susanne Meyer-Buser figured out that the orientation of the picture seen on the easel is different with denser strips downward instead of upwards.
A photo from 1944, taken a few days after artist Mondrian’s death, shows the picture on an easel in his studio in a different orientation, reported by Sky News.
Artwork details
For more than 75 years, an artwork has been hung upside down.
New York City I is one of the most important works by Dutch abstract artist Piet Mondrian, but experts now believe it has been turned upside down for decades.
Regardless, it will remain that way if the strips used in the artwork come loose.
The painting was completed in 1941 and debuted in 1945 at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
It has been on display at the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen in Düsseldorf, Germany, since 1980.
Bizarre discovery
Susanne Meyer-Buser, curator of the artist’s anniversary exhibition, spoke about the history of the artwork.
Which uses red, yellow, blue, and black adhesive strips, then stunned the audience by revealing its secret.
She claimed to have discovered a photograph from Mondrian’s studio, taken a few days after his death in 1944.
In that the image could be seen on the easel in a different orientation: the denser stripes on the upper edge.
“The grid should thicken at the top, like a dark sky,” she told The Guardian.
“When I pointed it out to the other curators, we realized how obvious it was. I am certain that the picture is upside down.”
Mondrian, who was born in the Netherlands in 1872, is regarded as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century.
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Source: Sky News
