Piet Mondrian Forest near Oele

About the original work

“Bos bij Oele” (Forest at Oele) has previously been associated with the work of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (1863-1944). It seems unlikely that Mondrian knows Munch’s work in 1908. It is not exhibited in Amsterdam and remains undiscussed in the Dutch press until 1911. The few images in international magazines probably don’t reach him either. Why they are reminiscent of each other may be due to their approach. Mondrian sees this work as a drawing in paint, just as Munch often approaches his work. Mondrian sets it up with strongly diluted paint, drawing with a brush and with broad brushes, and sometimes scrapes with a palette knife. This is how the elongated patterns that appear in Bosch are created; Bos bij Oele are set on with glowing, saturated colors.

Mondriaan submits the painting to participate in an exhibition in January 1909 at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, which he organizes with artist friends Cees Spoor and Jan Sluijters. It is the first time that he is explicitly concerned with the presentation of his work and that he asks himself how he wants the public to see the paintings. The canvases are in wide, white-painted frames, which push the canvas forward. These lists are still around it today. As early as the nineteenth century, artists thought about the frame as both a boundary and an extension of the work of art. Mondrian chooses neutral white to show the intensity of the colours. The wide white frame around Bosch; Bos bij Oele shows that Mondrian also likes to emphasize the intense effect of color in this work.

• Title: Bos bij Oele
• Artist: Piet Mondriaan
• Year: 1908
• Material: Oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 128 × 158 cm
• Location: Kunstmuseum, The Hague

Additional information

This painting by Piet Mondrian is reproduced as a Giclée with an advanced 12-color printer that sprays the pigment inks onto the canvas or paper, layer by layer. Due to this large color spectrum and the high resolution, the reproduction is very close to the original.
The pigment inks used are UV-resistant, so that no discoloration can occur. The colors always remain beautiful and that is why we give an unlimited guarantee! You can order Giclees framed and unframed.