Le Message à la terre 

René Magritte made this oil on canvas, "Le Message à la terre," and in it, he continues his project of unsettling our relationship to the world through commonplace objects. Painted in Belgium, perhaps in the late 1950s or early 60s, it reflects a time of institutional growth for the visual arts. In fact, Magritte had been encouraged to quit his job as a commercial artist in order to devote himself to painting, an interesting tension that shows up in his works. Here, a large plum-colored object and a white curtain, each rather banal, are put on display by a painted frame. The way these objects are viewed—through the art institution—is what gives them meaning, and the framing calls attention to the politics of imagery. Is Magritte critiquing the act of elevating everyday objects to "art"? Perhaps he is reminding us that the significance of art relies upon the social and institutional context in which it is made. As art historians, we can look to exhibition catalogs and the archives of museums and galleries to better understand the impact of this painting.