The Kiss (Le Baiser)

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Artist René Magritte (Belgian, 1898–1967)Belgian, 1898–1967

CultureBelgian

Titles

The Kiss (Le Baiser)

Date1951

PlaceFrance

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions24 x 30 3/8 in. (61 x 77.2 cm)

Credit LineGift of an anonymous donor

Object number91.1997

Current Location

The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building

Gallery 203

On view

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Department

Modern and Contemporary Art

Object Type

VESSELS

DescriptionThe Belgian Surrealist René Magritte said
of his work, “People who look for symbolic
meanings fail to grasp the inherent poetry
and mystery of the image. No doubt they
sense this mystery, but they wish to get rid
of it. They are afraid. By asking ‘what does
this mean?’ they express a wish that everything be understandable. But if one does not
reject the mystery, one has quite a different
response. One asks other things.”
ProvenanceThe artist; [Alexander Iolas, Paris, October 1951–1952]; the artist; William Copley by 1959; [Hanover Gallery, London]; John and Dominique de Menil, Houston, 1964; Marvin Key Collie and Nancy Morriss Collie, Houston, January 1966; Nancy Morriss Collie and MFAH, December 1991, until her d. 2004; given to the MFAH, 2004.
Exhibition History“Magritte,” Rome, Galleria dell'Obelisco, January–February 1953, no. 9.

“Magritte,” Little Rock, Arkansas Art Center, May–June 1964.

“Secret Affinities: Words and Images by René Magritte,” Houston, Texas, Rice University, Institute for the Arts, October 1, 1976–January 2, 1977.

“El Mundo Invisible de René Magritte,” Mexico DF, Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, March 11–July 11, 2010.

“René Magritte: The Pleasure Principle,’ London, Tate Liverpool, June 24–October 16, 2011; Vienna, Albertina, November 9, 2011–February 28, 2012.

“René Magritte: The Fifth Season,” San Francisco, San Francisco Museum of Art, May 19–October 28, 2018.

"“René Magritte," Sydney, Australia, Art Gallery of New South Wales, October 26, 2024–February 9, 2025.

Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Marked on verso canvas upper right: "LE BAISER 1951" (see photocopies of inscription before re-lining)

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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