Piet Mondrian

Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) was a Dutch painter and one of the pioneers of abstract art. He began his career as a traditional landscape artist but gradually shifted towards abstraction, simplifying his compositions and focusing on the interplay of lines and shapes. In 1917, he co-founded the De Stijl movement, which aimed to create a new art form that reflected the modern, industrialized world. Mondrian's signature style featured a grid of black lines with primary colors and white planes, which he called "neoplasticism." This style reflected his belief in the harmony of opposites and the universal principles that underlie all art and nature. Mondrian's work has had a lasting impact on modern art, influencing artists such as Mark Rothko and the minimalists of the 1960s.