MC Escher: Journey into Infinity

Here’s the rare documentary about a great artist that understands it has to itself be a creative piece of work to truly delve into the mind of a visionary. Escher: Journey Into Infinity is as good as a film can get about the world-famous Dutch graphic artist.

M.C Escher’s prime working years were from around 1936 – when his depiction of the Alhambra showcased his interest in tessellation – until 1969 when he bid adieu to the art world with a woodcut print entitled Snakes, which was one final example of his unique focus on symmetry.

Of course, photography and videography existed between these years but there’s not so much archive for sophomore feature director Robin Lutz to use, as convention would otherwise have it. Or rather, Lutz’s ambitions are much more creative. This is about as subjective as a cinematic experience one can get about the icon’s life, utilising his own writing to transport the viewers into his mind, accompanied by the gallery of images seen by the artist, from his own work to the places he visited for inspiration.

The words are beautifully and humorously brought to life by Stephen Fry, who brings the same vibrant energy to narrating this wondrous documentary as he did to directing players through the wonderful creations of the video game series LittleBigPlanet. In both works, the English comedian accessibly guides us through rich artistic imaginations, turning bewildering worlds into ones that we want to enter and immerse ourselves.

That’s certainly the case with this documentary, which invites you to continue digging into Escher’s journey long after the credits roll. It can never cover everything, especially with so many different interpretations of the artist’s theories to be heard. Plus, there’s the whole series of mathematical principles which are no simple geometry lesson. But it’s a great starting point, offering viewers a dazzling audio-visual experience to sketch his life.

Musanna Ahmed

MC Escher: Journey into Infinity is released in select cinemas on 13^th August 2021.

Watch the trailer for MC Escher: Journey into Infinity here: