Piet Mondriaan and Michel Seuphor | A friendship in line and colour

In the bustling Paris of the early twentieth century, the young artist Michel Seuphor (1901–1999) visits Piet Mondriaan’s studio. The building itself wasn’t very impressive to Seuphor. He says: ‘The small courtyard, where the entrance to Mondriaan’s studio was located, was miserable. The stairwell was a bit smelly.’ Once inside, Seuphor experiences something special: ‘beauty, peace, tranquillity and balance.’ In the studio Mondriaan’s vision and precision become tangible. It is a place where art and philosophy come together. This meeting marks the beginning of a long-standing friendship between the two artists, who keep inspiring each other. Together they create a tableau-poème in which painting and poetry come together. Seuphor also wrote the first monograph on Mondriaan, in which he examined the artist’s life and work. In addition to his writing Seuphor also developed as an artist with a visual language all his own. His art is characterised by a clear focus on the interplay of lines, geometry, and rhythm, expressed through drawings and large tapestries. Seuphor’s artistic development, from early experiments to later works with visible influences from Eastern philosophies come to life in Piet Mondriaan and Michel Seuphor | A friendship in line and colour.

On display from 17 May 2025 at Museum Villa Mondriaan.

Image: © SABAM Belgium, 2025, Michel Seuphor, Jeu dans l’axe, inv.nr. 4066, picture: d/arch, Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen – Collectie Vlaamse Gemeenschap.