About Escher

Recently, Escher in The Palace and Kunstmuseum Den Haag were able to enrich their collection with a personal work by M.C. Escher: the tile tableau Fish and Birds from 1960, which hung in Escher's studio for many years.   

M.C. Escher was born on 17 June 1898, in Leeuwarden. He’s the third son from the second marriage of George Arnold Escher, to Sara Gleichman. Escher’s father already had two sons from a previous marriage. Maurits Cornelis was named after his mother’s uncle. When he was small, his official name was changed by the family to the familiar 'Maukie', later becoming 'Mauk', a name that would also be used by his friends.

Dutchman Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972) is one of the most famous graphic artists in the world. The way he plays with perspective, space and reality means he remains fascinating even today. The highlights of his collection can be seen in Escher in The Palace.

The life of Escher, year by year. In over 70 informative chapters you learn about his life and work, ending with the opening of Escher in The Palace.

Escher was a printmaker, but what exactly is that? Read the pages below to find out more about the techniques he used: woodcut, wood engraving, linocut, lithography, etching and mezzotint. Each of them has its own particular qualities, so the prints made using these techniques differ in terms of their complexity and visual character.

Throughout the years several interesting documentaries and short films have been made about printmaker M.C. Escher. On this page we show a selection of them, along with a brief description.