The evidence of flux, of shapes and lines changing only slightly but changing perception dramatically is also the source of definition—Mondrian, with his constant revisions to his works secures his identity as a painter.

The Fogg does not just restore Mondrian to a painter but to a Modern artist worthy of consistent inclusion in the canon.

Mondrian teeters on the edge of abstraction, with recognizable shapes but that have no apparent form. Though he painted in a smock and tie, he was untraditional in every way—he was the first to paint on a horizontal plane, carefully constructing his paintings on a table.

But technique aside, the Fogg establishes Mondrian not only as a painter but as a thinker—willing to challenge the traditional opposition between black and white and color and the opposition of shapes and lines. The Fogg’s superb exhibit allows opposition to become unity within the boogie woogie of a Mondrian.