The Baker Museum Presents Six Rare René Magritte Works from the Van Parys Family Collection

The Baker Museum in Naples, Florida, is presenting six works by René Magritte from the Van Parys family collection in ‘Magritte: Reflections of Another World’. The exhibition comprises five oil paintings and one gouache, all on a five-year loan to Artis—Naples, The Baker Museum. According to the museum, the works have never previously been shown in North America and had not been exhibited publicly for more than 48 years.

Located on the museum’s second floor, the presentation brings together works from distinct periods of Magritte’s career, including ‘L’Ombre monumentale (The Monumental Shadow)’ (1932), ‘Le Civilisateur (The Civilizer)’ (1944), ‘La Tour d’Ivoire (The Ivory Tower)’ (1945), ‘L’Île au trésor (Treasure Island)’ (1945), ‘Shéhérazade’ (1947) and ‘Les Grandes Vacances (Summer Holidays)’ (1956). The works are listed in Magritte’s catalogue raisonné.

Magritte (1898–1967), the Belgian painter known for placing familiar objects in unsettling or unexpected surroundings, was a founding figure in the Belgian Surrealist Group, formed in 1924. He later moved to Paris with his wife and became one of the first painters to join the Paris Surrealists. The museum’s account of his career notes that recognition came gradually: although he continued to work through the 1930s while financial success remained elusive, his reputation expanded during that decade. After a period of critical resistance to his experiments in the 1940s, he returned to favor in the 1950s and received a retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art in 1965.

The works’ provenance is linked to Jean Van Parys (1891–1964), a Belgian attorney who spent two years in Paris engaging with the city’s avant-garde art and culture. After returning to Brussels, Van Parys began collecting contemporary Belgian artists, including Magritte. Over the following three decades, he and his wife built one of the largest private collections of Magritte’s art. The Van Parys and Magritte families also developed a close friendship. The six works in Naples were held by Van Parys and are being lent by his daughter.

The loan came to Artis—Naples through an unexpected encounter during a March 2019 performance of Stravinsky’s ‘The Firebird’ by the Naples Philharmonic. A subscriber approached an usher with a business card and a story about a collection that had been in her family’s possession for more than 60 years. The usher connected her with museum staff, leading to the offer of a loan. The lender, described by the museum as an avid supporter of Artis—Naples, wished for the works to be shown at an institution personally meaningful to her.

The exhibition is organized by Artis—Naples, The Baker Museum, with Dr. Elliott King as guest curator. It is part of the museum’s programme of exhibitions, which also includes presentations drawn from its permanent collection, contemporary glass and ceramics, and work by Baltimore- and Washington, DC-based artist Linling Lu. ‘Magritte: Reflections of Another World’ is listed as an ongoing exhibition at The Baker Museum in Naples, Florida.