Nothing is quite what it seems in the universe of Maurits Cornelis Escher (widely known as M.C. Escher). The Dutch artist, famed for his graphic prints featuring infinite staircases, twisted perspectives and self-replicating animals, was a master of illusion in more ways than one.
Escher's pictures aren’t simply puzzles designed to play tricks on the brain; they were born of a desire to stretch our powers of perception, to encourage us to cultivate a natural curiosity and playfulness about the world around us. According to New York gallerist Skot Foreman, the artist had a rare gift. “He combined the structure and analytics of the left brain with the artistic creativity of the right brain,” Foreman explains. “Somehow, he turned images into mind-bending universes that were able to stretch the boundaries of our imagination, urging us to rethink the realms of possibility within nature’s laws of order.”
But creating illusionistic illustrations was not Escher’s only talent. He was also a passionate diarist, recording his thoughts and frustrations in written form throughout his life. He often lamented that his pictures could never fully convey his cerebral imaginings. At the same time, he expressed impatience with those who couldn’t see beyond the surface appeal of his shape-shifting patterns. Escher was an artist who sought perfection and felt misunderstood by the mainstream art world.
“The most important thing about Escher is that he was always curious, always researching and exploring. Most people lose this quality as they get older, but Escher maintained a childlike enthusiasm for the world,” says Dutch filmmaker Robin Lutz, whose thoughtful feature-length film, M.C. Escher: Journey to Infinity, marries documentary footage with animation and unfolds at an unhurried pace, allowing Escher’s witty and intelligent prose to gently guide us through his creative evolution.
Escher always carried a magnifying glass in his pocket to “enjoy the tiniest details” at his feet, be it a plant climbing a rock, a butterfly or a grasshopper. He had a real passion for travel and spent more than a decade in Rome with his wife, Jetta, and young family. It was there that he first played with multiple perspectives, sketching the city’s architecture at night to avoid the “excessive baroque frills” he deemed too distracting in the daylight. Another big development was sparked by a 1936 visit to the Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain. Inspired by the Moorish tiles of the 14th-century landmark, Escher started to experiment with repeating patterns, or tessellations, creating his first woodcuts and lithographs of metamorphosing birds, lizards and fish interlocking and filling the entire surface of the paper in jigsaw fashion.
During and directly after World War II, Escher produced many of his most famous works, emotional reactions to a world plunged into chaos. This period marked the start of his fascination with impossible staircases, never-ending waterfalls and cyclical still lifes featuring figures and creatures seemingly caught in a loop, a paradox of entrapment and renewal.
Indeed, the concept of infinity was a major inspiration for him. It informs his fish-eye studies and curvilinear perspectives, which cram in so much dizzying detail it’s impossible to know where one thing ends and another begins. It’s no wonder, then, that Escher’s probing, mind-expanding prints have such enduring appeal.
Find original M.C. Escher art on 1stDibs.
Between Sky and Water - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Between Sky and Water, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different...
Color
NATURE - Flight of birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flight of birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x ...
Color
Metaphysics (Architecture in 4 Dimensions) - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Metaphysics, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellu...
Color
NATURE - Flock of Birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flock of Birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x 3...
Color
Birds and Fishes - Facsimile Lithograph, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Birds and Fishes, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x...
Color
Reflecting Globe - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Reflecting globe, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On ...
Color
NATURE - Autumn and Carp - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Birds and Fishes, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On ...
Color
NATURE - Intertwined Lizards - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Intertwined Lizards, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 4...
Color
Ascendant and Descendant - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Ascendant and Descendant, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be differ...
Color
The Impossible Castle - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) The Impossible Castle, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different...
Color
Surrealist Lovers - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Surrealist Lovers, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On...
Color
The Waterfall - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) The Waterfall, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vel...
Color
STILL LIFE - Reptiles - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Still life with reptiles, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be differ...
Color
The Medieval Army - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) The Medieval Army, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 ...
Color
The Impossible Staircase - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) The Impossible Staircase, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be differ...
Color
$1,200
H 25.25 in W 20.5 in
Windswept Landscape Henry Moore drawing of Scottish landscape for W.H. Auden
By Henry Moore
Located in New York, NY
One of a series of 18 lithographs drawn by the artist fo¬r the Auden Poems/Moore Lithographs 1974 book and portfolio. This work is from an edition of 25 printed on vellum aside from the portfolio (edition of 75) and the book. Signed by the artist lower right in pencil; numbered lower left in pencil. Printed in inky black, this print features a shadowy landscape. Brush sweeps to the left, and the sky is drawn with long horizontal lines. In the bottom half of the composition, the ground looks rocky, perhaps dotted with shrubs. Windswept Landscape displays Moore’s fascination with light and dark – what he called a “…bias towards the blackness and mysterious depths.” Moore was inspired by the prints of Rembrandt and the drawings of Seurat, and even drew on his memories of viewing the Altamira cave paintings, recalling how some of the images used the shadow of candlelight on the rough surface of the rock to model light. Shortly before starting work on this series of lithographs, Moore had fallen ill, leaving him aware of his own mortality. His mood pervaded these prints with a sense of danger and foreboding. The Auden/Moore limited edition book and portfolio were exhibited on publication at the British Museum, London, with an accompanying catalogue. Windswept Landscape is one of a group of lithographs...
Lithograph
$650
H 40 in W 30 in D 0.05 in
Original Spokane (WA.) Colorful Capital Fun Map vintage poster
Located in Spokane, WA
Original Spokane (Washington), The Colorful Capital of the Inland Empire vintage travel fun map. Printed in 1971, this seldom if ever found original map is archival linen backed an...
Lithograph
$750
H 20.75 in W 11.75 in D 1 in
Etching and aquatint of Wall Street, New York, 1920s
By Max Pollak
Located in Colfax, CA
Etching and aquatint of Wall Street, New York circa 1928 by Max Pollak. Painter and printmaker Max Pollak, (1886-1970), was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia and was raised in Vienna, A...
Etching, Aquatint
$1,850
H 23 in W 33 in
"Guns & Drugs 03" Photography 23" x 33" inch Edition 1/5 by Patricio Gonzalez
By Patricio Gonzalez
Located in Culver City, CA
"Guns & Drugs 03" Photography 23" x 33" inch Edition 1/5 by Patricio Gonzalez Photographs intervened (1/5 ) / 300gr paper museum quality Not framed....
Photographic Paper, Digital
$4,000
H 35.5 in W 53 in
Mid Century 1957 Vintage Corvette, Midnight Modern Architecture Palm Springs
By Tom Blachford
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Mid Century Modern Palm Springs Architecture. White Porsche Cabriolet 911 vintage Car photographed in Palm Desert. Archival Inkjet Print on Cotton Paper. Mid Century Modern Archit...
Cotton, Archival Ink, Photographic Paper
$880
H 28 in W 84 in
Pool Patterns, Nautical Abstract Seascape Triptych, Blue Cyanotype Print
By Kind of Cyan
Located in Barcelona, ES
This is an exclusive handprinted limited edition of a cyanotype. This beautiful triptych is called "Fresh California Pool patterns", which shows the semi-abstract movements of light reflecting in a California swimming pool. Details: + Edition Size: only 20 + Medium: Cyanotype Print on Watercolor Paper + Stamped and Certificate of Authenticity provided. + Measurements : 100x210 cm (40 x 84 in.) Each paper measures 100cm x 70cm (about 40 in. x 28 in.) each. , a standard frame size. + All cyanotype prints...
Lithograph
$1,996Sale Price|20% Off
H 13.25 in W 18.25 in
Raoul Dufy, Paddock, from Twelve Contemporaries, 1959 (after)
By Raoul Dufy
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Raoul Dufy (1877–1953) (after) Title: Paddock (Paddock) Year: December 1959 Medium: Lithograph and pochoir on velin paper Paper Size: 13.25 x 18.25 inches (33.7 x 46.4 cm) Co...
Lithograph, Stencil
$1,996Sale Price|20% Off
H 13.25 in W 18.25 in
Maurice Utrillo, Montmartre, from Twelve Contemporaries, 1959 (after)
By Maurice Utrillo
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Maurice Utrillo (1883–1955) (after) Title: Montmartre (Montmartre) Year: December 1959 Medium: Lithograph and pochoir on velin paper Paper Size: 13.25 x 18.25 inches (33.7 x ...
Lithograph, Stencil
$1,950
H 17.25 in W 22.25 in
1939 Pictorial Map of Chinatown San Francisco World’s Fair Golden Gate Bridge
Located in Yardley, PA
A vibrant pictorial map of San Francisco’s Chinatown, created by Ethel Chun in 1939. It is rendered in striking tones of traditional Chinese red and yellow. Oriented with west at the...
Paper
$850
H 17.75 in W 16 in
The Enchantress in her Garden David Hockney Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm
By David Hockney
Located in New York, NY
From David Hockney’s celebrated Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm portfolio, an image from the story of Rapunzel. Hockney stated: “The old woman who wants the child. In one tr...
Etching, Aquatint
$675
H 40 in W 26.5 in D 0.2 in
Original Continental Airlines limited edition travel poster
Located in Spokane, WA
Original Continental Airlines travel poster. Linen backed in fine condition. Signed and numbered 35/50. This original Continental Airlines poster artistically represents regional destinations prominently served by Continental Airlines in the past. The design is modern and bold, showcasing a unique black-and-white theme with strong, futuristic typography and graphical illustrations. Each city is creatively depicted using stylized imagery that resonates with its character—Oklahoma City features a cowboy motif, New Orleans embraces a jazzy, cultural essence, Dallas reflects the energy of movement, and Midland/Odessa highlights industrial and oil-centric themes. This limited-edition poster is printed in black and white. It features Oklahoma City, New Orleans, Dallas, and Midland / Odessa destinations. Above each name is a design that represents each destination city. Oklahoma City has rodeo horseback riding. New Orleans has steamships, Dallas has football players, and Midland has large oil tanker trucks. This image features the Saul Bass l967 Continental logo in the design. Continental Airlines was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. The airline was acquired by UAL Corporation, the parent company of United Airlines, on October 1, 2010. This is an original vintage Continental Airlines poster...
Screen
$899
H 31.5 in W 23.5 in D 0.05 in
Vintage "Cycles Alphonse Thomann", 50th Anniversary bicycle poster 1949 lithog
Located in Spokane, WA
Pier Gobbe's 1949 Cycles Alphonse Thomann poster is a masterpiece of kinetic energy and commercial elegance. Created to celebrate the bicycle manufacturer's 50th anniversary, this lithograph captures the exhilaration of speed through bold graphic simplification and masterful use of limited color. The composition features a bicycle wheel rendered in luminous orange, dominating the composition against a soft blue sky, while a set of wings ingeniously emerges from the center of the tire—a whimsical visual metaphor suggesting the bicycle's power to transport riders swiftly across the landscape. Gobbe's design demonstrates the sophisticated restraint characteristic of 1940s French commercial art. Rather than cluttering the composition with ornamental detail, he focuses on essential forms and a refined color palette of light blue and warm orange, allowing the image to breathe. The unbleached natural cotton paper stock, with its characteristic tan tone, adds authentic period warmth. The typography is confident and clean, perfectly complementing the geometric elegance of the wheel-and-wing motif. This vintage bicycle poster...
Lithograph
$670
H 23.43 in W 8.27 in D 0.04 in
Le Corbusier, "La ricerza paziente" – Original Swiss Vintage Exhibition Poster
Located in Zurich, CH
Original Vintage Poster, issued 1980 on the occasion of the exhibition in Lugano named after Le Corbusier's famous dictum "creation is a patient sea...
Paper
Original poster Périgueux 2023 / Affiche originale.
By Grégoire Mathias
Located in PÉRIGUEUX, FR
Chaque année Grégoire Mathias produit une affiche de tourisme avec pour sujet la ville de Périgueux, en Dordogne. Etant collectionneur d'affiches, il...
Color
$225
H 34 in W 20.5 in D 0.05 in
Original Palm Springs Desert Oasis psychedelic vintage poster
Located in Spokane, WA
Original poster: Palm Springs The Desert Oasis original poster by Bill Ogden. The poster is not linen-backed. Excellent condition. Mint. 1969. ...
Offset
Between Sky and Water - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Between Sky and Water, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different...
Color
Bundle of 8 Woodcuts by M.C. Escher
By M.C. Escher
Located in Roma, IT
Bundle of woodcuts by M.C. Escher: Buoy,Well,Beehive,Signpost,Balance,Watering Can,Anvil and Colophon
Woodcut
NATURE - Flight of birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flight of birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x ...
Color
Birds and Fishes - Facsimile Lithograph, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Birds and Fishes, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x...
Color
NATURE - Flight of birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flight of birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x ...
Color
The Waterfall - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) The Waterfall, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vel...
Color
Between Sky and Water - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Between Sky and Water, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different...
Color
NATURE - Flight of birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flight of birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x ...
Color
NATURE - Flock of Birds - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Flock of Birds, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1938 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x 3...
Color
NATURE - Autumn and Carp - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Birds and Fishes, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On ...
Color
Birds and Fishes - Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Birds and Fishes, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Unsigned Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellum 45 x...
Color
STILL LIFE - Reptiles - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Still life with reptiles, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1943 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be differ...
Color
Metaphysics - Signed Facsimile, Ltd /450
By M.C. Escher
Located in Paris, IDF
M.C. ESCHER (1898-1972) Metaphysics, 2008 Facsimile after the original woodcut from 1935 Signed in the plate Numbered / 450 copies (the number you can see can be different) On vellu...
Color
Up And Down - Lithograph by M.C. Escher - 1947
By M.C. Escher
Located in Roma, IT
Hand Signed. Printed in black ink, and part of a limited edition thought to be of 400 specimen. Image Dimensions : 51 x 20 cm Reference: Bool n. 352 Locher 146. Very good conditio...
Lithograph
Sold
H 24 in W 25.25 in D 2 in
M. C. Escher Plane Filling Mosaic II Lithograph Wove Paper Signed numbered 1957
By M.C. Escher
Located in Portland, OR
Plane Filling/Mosaic II (1957) by M. C. Escher. In excellent condition, whilst it is housed in the original frame and buckram rabbet the image has been professionally re-housed with ...
Lithograph