Design for a poster for an exhibition at The Little Review Gallery, New York 1925

Theo van Doesburg made this poster design for an exhibition at The Little Review Gallery in New York with paint, likely gouache or tempera, judging by its matte appearance. I can imagine van Doesburg carefully plotting out the composition, dividing the square into four triangles, each a different primary color. He's pushing for clarity but there's also something playful in the way he tilts the whole thing on its axis, forcing us to read the text diagonally. I love the hand-painted lettering that wraps around the edges of the triangles! You can see the slight imperfections, the tiny wobbles that give it so much character. It makes it feel so human and approachable. Van Doesburg was part of the De Stijl movement, along with Piet Mondrian, and they both explored abstraction through simple geometric forms and primary colors. But while Mondrian was all about balance and harmony, Van Doesburg was a bit more of a rebel. He was interested in dynamism and movement and this poster design, with its tilted angles, really captures that energy. It feels like he's trying to break free from the grid, to shake things up. It's like he's saying, "Let's get this show on the road!"