I love the MoMA. The Museum of Modern Art. I also have to mention that I love their gift shop. It is incredible. So fun, so creative, and so colorful. I could stay there forever -if I didn’t have the MoMA itself right in front of me, of course.
Even though there are always exciting new exhibitions at the MoMA, I always seem to find myself going back to their permanent collection. Walking through Frida Kahlo, Joan Miró, Edward Hopper, and René Magritte. Magritte is my favorite. I have always been fascinated by his surrealist work. He feels so before his time.
When I was at the MoMA this time, I couldn’t help but fixate on Magritte’s The Menaced Assassin (1927). Colorful, but dark and colorless at the same time. I always have so many questions when I see this painting. Even though, as the observer, I know much more than the people inside the painting.
There are seven people. A killed woman, a man who maybe killed her, two policemen, and three unknown men standing outside. The connection between these seven figures is inconclusive. We don’t know how each of them relates, or doesn’t relate, to each other.
At the center of the painting is the murdered woman. She’s just lying there, and next to her stands a man by a music player, looking as if he is about to leave. We don’t know if he needs to flee because he murdered his wife. Or maybe she isn’t his wife at all. Maybe she is his mistress. I don’t know if he sees the three men outside. And what are they doing there? Why are they there? Are they there to help the man flee? Did they do the murder and frame him? Do they know the woman?
And what about the two police officers coming in? They are probably arriving to take the man into custody. But do they know about the three men outside? Probably not. Or maybe those three men are collaborating with the police. I love how there are so many different ways this story can unravel. And it’s my decision how it will end. I can decide who the three men are, and whether the man killed the woman or not.
My theory is that the three men outside are going to help the man who killed his wife. First of all, they aren’t looking at the woman. Instead, they’re looking directly at him. They also look exactly like him: same outfit, same hair, almost the same face.
I also think it’s fascinating how calm the man looks as he stands there listening to music, instead of fleeing the scene right away. He is taking his time. Maybe he knows the police are right there, and he has come to terms with this being the end.
And of course, all of this fits Magritte’s whole universe. The mystery, the hidden logic, the way he loves to rearrange reality so it feels just a little wrong. The hats, the suits, the stillness, the theatrical lighting. It’s all classic Magritte. He makes you create your own story, because he refuses to give you one. That’s why I love this painting so much. It’s not just a murder scene, it’s a puzzle without all the pieces.
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