[Regular Division of the Plane II].

June 1957
Woodcut in red or black
240 x 180 (9 1/2 x 7 1/8”) B. 417

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M.C. Escher was born on June 18th, 1898.  In celebration, this original Regular Division of the Plane woodcut is on offer.

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Escher wrote The Regular Division of the Plane to demonstrate his thought process on creating tessellations.  The portfolio came with 12 original woodcuts.  Six woodcuts were in black and white with gray borders - Escher did not want the viewer to think that white was the background, as such the paper is a light cream and the gray background sets a neutral tone so that our eyes have a chance to perceive the light and dark creatures equally.  The other six prints were loose, printed in red ink on a light cream paper and were meant to be hung by the purchaser of the book.  The beetles and dragonfly tessellations are not used in other artworks whereas the flying fish are in the small print Fish Vignette (B.398).  The three tessellation motifs at the top demonstrate tessellation patterns and were modeled after mosaic tilework at the Alhambra.  These works are some of the largest unsigned woodcuts Escher created. 

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This woodcut is in acid-free matting and backing and framed. The first collector who emails me gets their choice of Plane II in either red or black ink, shipped FedEx within the U.S., for $3,200.