# Will M.C. Escher be regarded as one of the greats? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2014, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334 "2014-03-23T02:40:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/1 "2014-03-23T02:40:17Z")
Digging up a 20 year old book on M.C. Escher and sharing his art with my son, and I found myself appreciating his material more than I remember. And I realize he’s been part of geek-culture and popular illustrations of “trippy” impossibly twisting of perceptions or strange loops. But could he be regarded as one of the greats in a genius blend of art and mathematics/geometry? Not unlike the breakthrough in vanishing points of the Renaissance era? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/2 "2014-03-23T02:46:02Z")
I think he’ll be considered one of the better artists of the 20th century, but I doubt he’ll be considered great. He’ll be studied in art school, but won’t be remembered like people like Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci, van Gogh, etc. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/3 "2014-03-23T03:21:51Z")
The problem is that you really can’t compare his work with anyone else’s. He was definitely a genius, but his work is unique, and doesn’t fit into any category of art, or even illustration. Actually, that - in and of itself - may qualify him as one of the greats. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/4 "2014-03-23T03:39:16Z")
I think he will. He’s pretty much a household name, known for the qualities of his artifice. Even if someone only knows _Relativity_, _Ascending and Descending_, and _Waterfall_, they will recognise his work. ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/5 "2014-03-23T03:44:58Z")
He’ll always have a place on college dorm walls. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/6 "2014-03-23T04:04:48Z")
Escher’s neat, not great. “Ha, nice trick!” is the right response to an Escher artwork, and that’s not really a formula for greatness. Talking right out my ass I am here but it’s the thing God gave me to speak with. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/7 "2014-03-23T04:52:22Z")
> [@Subterraneanus](#): > > He’ll always have a place on college dorm walls. 😉 Him and Edvard Munch. I have books on both of them - the only art books I ever bought. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/8 "2014-03-23T06:14:20Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The problem is that you really can’t compare his work with anyone else’s. He was definitely a genius, but his work is unique, and doesn’t fit into any category of art, or even illustration. Actually, that - in and of itself - may qualify him as one of the greats. Isn’t he essentially a surrealist? I mean, I have no problem grouping him together with artists like Magritte and Dali. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/9 "2014-03-23T07:36:51Z")
it is hard to say what it is. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/10 "2014-03-23T08:15:46Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The problem is that you really can’t compare his work with anyone else’s. He was definitely a genius, but his work is unique, and doesn’t fit into any category of art, or even illustration. Actually, that - in and of itself - may qualify him as one of the greats. Erik Nitsche had a much different style, but I suspect that he would appeal to a similar set of people. [https://www.google.com/search?safe=off&rlz=1C2CHFX\_enUS465US465&biw=1304&bih=892&tbm=isch&q=erik%20nitsche%20designs&revid=1490248576&ei=5JcuU6rlEIrmoAT-6YHQCg&ved=0CCEQsyU#imgdii=\_](https://www.google.com/search?safe=off&rlz=1C2CHFX_enUS465US465&biw=1304&bih=892&tbm=isch&q=erik%20nitsche%20designs&revid=1490248576&ei=5JcuU6rlEIrmoAT-6YHQCg&ved=0CCEQsyU#imgdii=_) ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/11 "2014-03-23T11:32:22Z")
I love Escher - he reached in and touched my brain when I was growing up. I guess I think of him as like Prog Rock - mastery of craft, complex ideas, but a following that hovers between cult and mainstream. We’ll have to see how the continuing-to-be-ascendant geek/nerd culture progresses…we’ve elevated comic books, Tolkien, etc - maybe Escher will be lifted up more, too… ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/12 "2014-03-23T11:39:31Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The problem is that you really can’t compare his work with anyone else’s. He was definitely a genius, but his work is unique, and doesn’t fit into any category of art, or even illustration. Actually, that - in and of itself - may qualify him as one of the greats. El Greco suffered from the same problem for several centuries. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/13 "2014-03-23T12:31:37Z")
Isn’t he already regarded as “one of the greats”? ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/14 "2014-03-23T13:33:53Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Isn’t he already regarded as “one of the greats”? That’s what I thought. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/15 "2014-03-23T14:19:08Z")
I have one of his pencil sketches tattooed on my back. It’s five pyramids intersecting each other. I call it my escher sketch. Others call it an everlasting gobstopper. One of those things that constantly draws the eye from one part to another. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/16 "2014-03-23T16:16:20Z")
> **[Answerbag Resource Busy -- Start a conversation. Have some fun.](http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/2152827)** > > Ask questions on any topic, get real answers from real people. Have a question? Ask it. Know an answer? Share it. [QUOTE=some random messageboard after I Googled MCE prices] Actually…David’s numbers are not quite accurate. Original water colors and drawings by Escher can command in excess of $2 million dollars or more. Extremely rare multiblock woodcuts have sold for over $3 million. On average…signed woodcuts and stone lithos start at $20k and go up to over $150k. Unsigned woodcuts can be found for as little as $1,000 up to $10,000 for the periodicals…(Strens cards, book plates, etc). Emblemata pieces can command from $1500 to $3500. All of this depends on condition which ultimately dictates the price. A Waterfall in poor condition might bring as low as $5k…where as a mint 1st Edition Waterfall can command in excess of $95k. If you are in the market for an original Escher…contact me. Emanuel Volakis Volakis Gallery [/QUOTE] From a purely price-based perspective, cold though it is, he clearly commands large $$, but not on a scale of big contemporaries like Pollock, Warhol, Johns, etc. Again, he’s one of the greats, but in a “highly respected and collectible illustrator” sort of way. Please hear me - I am not saying I support this; I am trying to say that I perceive that MCE is viewed somehow differently from Great 20th Century Artists™ and am trying to articulate what it might be. His approach was antithetical to the non-representational art that is identified with the period - and had no cultural commentary like Pop Art silkscreens. ---
**Author:** ![sentrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@sentrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sentrix)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/17 "2014-03-23T16:20:48Z")
He was unique. Same as Dali. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/18 "2014-03-23T16:27:48Z")
He IS one of the greats. Whether he will be regarded as one, I have no idea. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/19 "2014-03-23T20:54:41Z")
You can never finish understanding great art, but you completely understand an Escher the first time you see it. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334/20 "2014-03-23T21:41:35Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > You can never finish understanding great art, but you completely understand an Escher the first time you see it. Perhaps an example of great art that can never be completely understood would illustrate this theory? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-m-c-escher-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-greats/684334.md?page=2)