Metamorphosis III
Encyclopedia
Metamorphosis III is a woodcut
print by the Dutch
artist M. C. Escher
which was created by between 1967 and 1968. Measuring 19 cm × 680 cm (7½ × 268 inches - 22’4”), this is Escher’s largest print and most likely the largest print ever made. It was printed on thirty-three blocks on six combined sheets and mounted on canvas. This print was partly coloured by hand.
It begins identically to Metamorphosis II
, with the word metamorphose (the Dutch
form of the word metamorphosis
) forming a grid pattern and then becoming a black-and-white checkered pattern. Then the first set of new imagery begins. The angles of the checkered pattern change to elongated diamond shapes. These then become an image of flowers with bees. This image then returns to the diamond pattern and back into the chequered pattern.
It then resumes with the Metamorphosis II imagery until the bird pattern. The birds then become sailing boats. From the sailing boats the image changes to a second fish pattern. Then from the fish to horses. The horses then become a second bird pattern. The second bird pattern then becomes black-and-white triangles which then become envelopes with wings. These winged envelopes then return to the black-and-white triangles and then to the original bird pattern. It then resumes with the Metamorphosis II print until its conclusion.
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
print by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
artist M. C. Escher
M. C. Escher
Maurits Cornelis Escher , usually referred to as M. C. Escher , was a Dutch graphic artist. He is known for his often mathematically inspired woodcuts, lithographs, and mezzotints...
which was created by between 1967 and 1968. Measuring 19 cm × 680 cm (7½ × 268 inches - 22’4”), this is Escher’s largest print and most likely the largest print ever made. It was printed on thirty-three blocks on six combined sheets and mounted on canvas. This print was partly coloured by hand.
It begins identically to Metamorphosis II
Metamorphosis II
Metamorphosis II is a woodcut print by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher. It was created between November, 1939 and March, 1940. This print measures and was printed from 20 blocks on 3 combined sheets....
, with the word metamorphose (the Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
form of the word metamorphosis
Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops after birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation...
) forming a grid pattern and then becoming a black-and-white checkered pattern. Then the first set of new imagery begins. The angles of the checkered pattern change to elongated diamond shapes. These then become an image of flowers with bees. This image then returns to the diamond pattern and back into the chequered pattern.
It then resumes with the Metamorphosis II imagery until the bird pattern. The birds then become sailing boats. From the sailing boats the image changes to a second fish pattern. Then from the fish to horses. The horses then become a second bird pattern. The second bird pattern then becomes black-and-white triangles which then become envelopes with wings. These winged envelopes then return to the black-and-white triangles and then to the original bird pattern. It then resumes with the Metamorphosis II print until its conclusion.
See also
- Metamorphosis IMetamorphosis IMetamorphosis I is a woodcut print by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher which was first printed in May, 1937. This piece measures and is printed on two sheets....
- Metamorphosis IIMetamorphosis IIMetamorphosis II is a woodcut print by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher. It was created between November, 1939 and March, 1940. This print measures and was printed from 20 blocks on 3 combined sheets....
- Atrani, Coast of AmalfiAtrani, Coast of AmalfiAtrani, Coast of Amalfi is a lithograph print by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher, first printed in August 1931. Atrani is a small town and commune on the Amalfi Coast in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. Atrani is the second smallest town in Italy and was built...
- Regular Division of the PlaneRegular Division of the PlaneRegular Division of the Plane is a series of drawings by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher which began in 1936. These images are based on the principle of tessellation, irregular shapes or combinations of shapes that interlock completely to cover a surface or plane.The inspiration for these works began...
- TessellationTessellationA tessellation or tiling of the plane is a pattern of plane figures that fills the plane with no overlaps and no gaps. One may also speak of tessellations of parts of the plane or of other surfaces. Generalizations to higher dimensions are also possible. Tessellations frequently appeared in the art...
- PrintmakingPrintmakingPrintmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Printmaking normally covers only the process of creating prints with an element of originality, rather than just being a photographic reproduction of a painting. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable...
External links
Sources
- Locher, J.L. (2000). The Magic of M. C. Escher. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. ISBN 0-8109-6720-0.