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Tuesday 20 September 2022

2510) "Victory Boogie Woogie (1942-44)" - A painting by Piet Mondriaan (or "Piet Mondrian"), Netherlands: PostNL (Netherlands Post) has issued a 24-carat Golden Stamp celebrating the milestone: Date of Stamp issue: 04.05.2022:

2510) "Victory Boogie Woogie (1942-44)" - A painting by Piet Mondriaan (or "Piet Mondrian"), Netherlands: PostNL (Netherlands Post) has issued a 24-carat Golden Stamp celebrating the milestone: Date of Stamp issue: 04.05.2022:

Links to Posts on Pieter Mondriaan (or "Piet Mondrian"):


Victory Boogie Woogie is the last, unfinished work of the Dutch abstract painter Piet Mondrian. Left incomplete in 1944, since 1998 it has been in the collection of the Kunstmuseum in The Hague.

About Golden Stamp - 150 Years Piet Mondrian:

In 2022, it is 150 years ago that Piet Mondrian was born.

This Golden Stamp from PostNL (Netherlands Post) marks the 150th Anniversary (1872-2022) of the birth of one of the art world’s most influential artists in the genre of Impressionism and art theoretician.

About Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan (or "Piet Mondrian") 07.03.1872 – 01.02.1944):

He was a Dutch painter and art theoretician who is regarded as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century

He is known for being one of the pioneers of 20th-century abstract art, as he changed his artistic direction from figurative painting to an increasingly abstract style, until he reached a point where his artistic vocabulary was reduced to simple geometric elements.

Mondrian's art was highly utopian and was concerned with a search for universal values and aesthetics

Piet Mondriaan was born on 07.03.1872 in Amersfoort and grew up in a strict Calvinistic family.  His father is a teacher and did not want him to be an artist.

Mondriaan started his education to be a drawing teacher, but he never let go of his only dream - being an artist. 

When he was 18 years old, he organised an exhibition of his own work.

In the beginning of his career, Mondriaan usually painted portraits and landscapes.

 Around his thirties, he started to develop an interest in theosophy - this is a discipline that searches for the common core of science, philosophy and religion. 

This is when Mondriaan’s interest for geometric shapes evolved - he saw them as the base of everything, despite the fact they do not show as such in nature. 

Mondriaan’s art slowly moved towards the abstract. His search for harmony and ‘absolute’ beauty by compositions of primary colours, horizontal and vertical lines and even colour areas eventually became his breakthrough and made Piet Mondriaan a true pioneer of abstract art.

He proclaimed in 1914: "Art is higher than reality and has no direct relation to reality. To approach the spiritual in art, one will make as little use as possible of reality, because reality is opposed to the spiritual. We find ourselves in the presence of an abstract art. Art should be above reality, otherwise it would have no value for man." His art, however, always remained rooted in nature.

He was a contributor to the "De Stijl Art Movement" and Group, which he co-founded with Theo van Doesburg. 

He evolved a non-representational form which he termed Neoplasticism

This was the new 'Pure Plastic Art' which he believed was necessary in order to create 'universal beauty'. 

To express this, Mondrian eventually decided to limit his formal vocabulary to the three primary colours (red, blue and yellow), the three primary values (black, white and gray) and the two primary directions (horizontal and vertical)

Mondrian's arrival in Paris from the Netherlands in 1911 marked the beginning of a period of profound change. He encountered experiments in Cubism and with the intent of integrating himself within the Parisian avant-garde removed an 'a' from the Dutch spelling of his name ("Mondriaan").

Mondrian's work had an enormous influence on 20th Century Artinfluencing not only the course of abstract painting and numerous major styles and Art Movements (for example - "Colour Field painting", "Abstract Expressionism" and "Minimalism"), but also fields outside the domain of painting, such as design, architecture and fashion

"Mondrian" has come to mean "Modernism". His name and his work sum up the High Modernist ideal. He has become totemic – a totem for everything Modernism set out to be.

He has been described as "the world’s greatest abstract geometrist".

The Golden Stamp:

PostNL has brought out this commemorative year Golden Stamp to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Piet Mondriaan birth.

The gold stamp shows an image of his most famous and last work - "Victory Boogie Woogie".

It was purchased at a cost of 80 million Dutch Guilders from an American collector who had earlier purchased the work from its previous owners in the mid 1980s

It was bought in 1997 by the "Stichting Nationaal Fonds Kunstbezit" ("National Art Foundation") through a gift from the Dutch Central Bank, commemorating the introduction of the Euro. 

At that time, it was the most expensive purchase ever by a Dutch museum. This amount of money spent on the gift raised questions in the Dutch House of Representatives, and also from other museums.

In 2014, Barack Obama was seen getting photographed with "Victory Boogie Woogie" in widely publicised events.

An image of the painting _Victory - Booogie Woogie

Painting highlights:

Type: Oil and paper on canvas

Dimensions: 127 cm × 127 cm (50 in × 50 in)

Present Location: Kunstmuseum, The Hague

Owner: State Property of the Netherlands through the "Stichting Nationaal Fonds Kunstbezit".

Technical Specifications:

Date of Stamp issue: 04.05.2022

Highlights: i) Each stamp is made of 24 carat gold


 ii) Certificate of Authenticity (COA) - Front & Back.

iii) Limited Edition

iv) Elegant storage box shown Open in this image

 




(The above Golden Stamp is from the collection of my friend Jayant Biswas a leading Numismatist & Philatelist. Post researched & written by Rajeev Prasad)








Posts on SEPAC issues on this blog:





Links to other Posts on Aland issues:


2) Wildflowers, Aland Islands: A new Series of Franking Labels issued by Aland Post: Date of issue: 03.02.2020





Posts on Finland on this Blog:



















Links:

i) "The Rooswijk", an ill-fated Dutch East Indiaman, Netherlands which sank during her second trip on 09.01.1740: Mexican Silver Cobs, Silver reales, Klippes and Pillar Dollars etc were recovered from the ship-wreck

The undernoted two links will take you to our blog "Footloose" for two interesting posts written by me on the Dutch presence in Sadras in the 17th Century AD:

i) Reconnecting with India's historical heritage: A visit to Sadras Fort built by the Dutch in 1648: (Part 1): a) Commentary of the Dutch presence in India & b) The Dutch Cemetery

ii) Reconnecting with India's historical heritage: (Part ii): A visit to Sadras Fort built by the Dutch in 1648: The ruins tell the story of a flourishing Sea-trade

Links to Posts on Pieter Mondriaan (or "Piet Mondrian"):


For other interesting posts on Belgium & Luxembourg Coins and Stamps:


5) City of Bruges (or Brugge), Belgium: 20 Years as UNENCO World Heritage Site: A 20 Euro Silver Proof Coin issued by the Royakl Dutch Mint under licencing of the Royal Belgian Mint, on behalf of the National Bank of Belgium: Coin issue date: 26.02.2020

6) 100 Years of Nature & Environment Protection, Luxembourg: Commemorating the Centenary Anniversary of the "Letzebuerger Natur a Vulleschutsliga a.s.b.l. (Luxembourg Nature and Bird Protection Society):A 0.80 Euro Stamp issued by Luxembourg Postes (Post): Date of stamp issue: 10.03.2020

7) Celebrating 25 Years of listing on UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Luxembourg: A Commemorative Stamp of 0.80 Euro issued by Luxembourg Postes (Post): Stamp issue date: 10.03.2020














Posts on SEPAC issues on this blog:



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Dutch Castles Coin Series:








Typically Dutch Postage Stamp Series "House Types & facades":





For other interesting posts on issues from the Royal Dutch Mint, Netherlands and PostNL, please visit the following links:


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10) First Atlases, Netherlands: Commemorating 450 Years of the first Atlas (1570-2020) & others: A Stamp Sheet of six stamps depicting the Atlases which were compiled in the Netherlands in the 16th & 17th Centuries AD: Stamp Set issued by POstNL: Date of Stamp Set issue: 23.03.2020






















Experience Nature Stamp Series:









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