As well as the reconstitution of the apartment of René Magritte on the ground floor, the museum holds a collection of over 400 archive documents, photos and objects, as well as 12 original works. These come together to describe the evolution of his life: from his youth up to the peak of his career. Besides the rare items, such as an original painting of his youth, the original manuscript‚ Book of Thoughts, the advertising works and letters to his clients and friends, the museum permanently exhibits other masterpieces, such as Le Témoin (1939), Lola de Valence (1948), or La Lampe d’Aladin (1954), not to forget the unique surrealist rug created in collaboration with his wife Georgette and his friend Paul Nougé… Our collection is presented chronologically and traces his career all the way through, from a relatively unknown artist producing some cubist work in the early 1920s to the Magritte that is so well-known today.
A very intimate setting and particular lighting has been adopted for the exhibition, to reflect the more personal nature of this museum, but also to ensure the preservation of the fragile objects in the collection.