Inside Out Victory Boogie Woogie: A Material History of Mondrian’s Masterpiece

Victory Boogie Woogie, Mondrian’s unfinished masterpiece created in 1942-44, has come to be regarded as not merely the high point of his oeuvre, but also as a dazzling icon of non-figurative art in the twentieth century. Although Mondrian did not live to give the painting its title, it is known that he regarded it as a development of his earlier work, Broadway Boogie Woogie. The work was acquired by the Dutch government in 1998 and has since been on permanent loan at the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague. Despite its landmark status in art history, Victory Boogie Woogie has never been studied in detail. This pioneering survey tracks the minute detail of the creation and physical appearance of the painting, delving into historical sources, conservation history and microscopic analysis of the paint surface and below.