After ten years of absence, MUDEC brings back to Milan one of the most fascinating and recognizable artists of the 20th century, Maurits Cornelis Escher (Netherlands, 1898–1972) with a major project entirely dedicated to him that offers a new perspective on his artistic journey.

Through 90 works by the artist including engravings, watercolors, woodcuts, and lithographs, along with around forty Islamic pieces for comparison, the exhibition explores the relationship between Escher and his sources of inspiration, tracing the artist's evolution: from his early ties to Art Nouveau, through his Italian landscapes, to his full maturity where he developed the use of tessellations, metamorphic cycles, optical illusions, and representations of infinity that made him famous through a unique visual language that combines art and mathematics.

This mathematics is not made up of abstract reasoning by professional academics, but of a long, meticulous, and passionate artisanal work, based on a more intuitive and perceptive approach that leads to the fusion of art and science in a rigorous, inventive, and deeply personal vision, forming a strong thread that characterizes the exhibition.

The exhibition also delves into a lesser-known aspect for the general public, namely the close relationship the artist had with Islamic art and how the use of symmetries, modular repetition, and abstract spatial vision – key elements of Islamic art – provided Escher with a very important inspiration to move beyond the naturalistic representation of reality.

Lastly, the exhibition focuses on an Escher who made this "graphic universe" his stylistic hallmark even in his extensive commercial production, highlighting how his genius also engaged with applied areas of graphic design.

To enrich the experience, a series of immersive multimedia installations curated by Maurits Srl are included, including a final Infinity Room that guides visitors through a fascinating and engaging immersive environment with a kaleidoscopic effect, thanks to the projection of high-definition animations inside a mirrored room.