Counter-Composition VIII

1924

Theo van Doesburg
Dutch, 1883–1931

In 1917 Theo van Doesburg founded an art periodical in Leiden called De Stijl (The Style). This name also referred to the artists’ group—including Van Doesburg, Piet Mondrian, and Georges Vantongerloo—associated with the publication. These artists saw abstraction as an almost spiritual vehicle to reconstruct art and society following World War I. Their approach, as exemplified by Counter-Composition VIII, was marked by fundamentals: geometry (squares, rectangles, and straight lines) combined with asymmetry; pure primary colors used along with black and white; and positive and negative elements. In addition to painting, De Stijl had a great impact on architecture and design, and it deeply influenced Germany’s famed Bauhaus.

Status: On View, Gallery 393
Department: Modern Art

Artist: Theo van Doesburg
Title: Counter-Composition VIII
Place: Netherlands (Artist's nationality:)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: 1924
Medium: Oil on canvas
Inscriptions: none
Dimensions: 101 × 101 cm (39 3/4 × 39 3/4 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Peggy Guggenheim
Reference Number: 1949.216

The Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in The Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Chicago, 1961) p. 128.

Amsterdam, 1938.
San Francisco, 1947.
New York, Art of This Century, Theo Doesburg, Retrospective Exhibition, November 27, 1947.
Eindhoven, Holland, Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, Theo van Doesburg Exhibition, December 13, 1968–January 25, 1969; traveled to The Hague, Gemeentemuseum, February 7–March 24, 1969; Paris, Musée National d’Art Moderne, April 6–May 15, 1969; Basel, Kunsthalle, August 9–September 7, 1969.
Paris, Centre National Georges Pompidou, Paris-New York, June 1–September 19, 1977, p. 493 (ill.).
Minneapolis, Minnesota, Walker Art Center, De Stijlj 1917–1931, February 6–April 4, 1982; traveled to Washington, D.C., Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, May–June 1982.
Berlin, Altes Museum, The XX Century-A Century of German Art, September 4, 1999–January 9, 2000.
Otterlo, Kroller-Muller, Theo Van Doesburg, March 11–June 18, 2000.

The artist; by descent to his widow, Nelly van Doesburg (1899-1975), 1931; sold to Peggy Guggenheim (1898-1979), New York and Venice, 1949 [Rotterdam, 2017]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1949.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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