Rene Magritte, Les Valeurs Personnelles (Personal Values), 1952

 

At first glance, what you will see is obviously a room. It is realistic, and could quite possible be passed off as photograph. But under a little scrutiny, you might find more than just a room.

I mean, what kind of room has such oddly proportioned things?

Putting the strangely sized things aside, the room would seem rather ordinary. Ceiling? Check.

Floor?Check.

Walls with a sky like wallpaper? Check. Wait, maybe that isn't too normal...

The wineglass:

It's one of the most prominent things in this painting, since it is demandingly in the centre and pretty much the only semi transparent object in the room. It is an typical wineglass that one would normally find at any respectable adult party. The top is tinged a light blue due to the background, while the bottoms more of a silvery white. Unfortunately for all those wine lovers out there, the glass is sadly empty.

While it might look in proportion standing on its own, in comparison to the room it is like a giant to other glasses, although the other objects don't look too small either.

The match stick:

The first thing to notice about the match stick; isn't it's colours a little strange? That will be explored later, but for now all that is needed to be known that the stick is pink and the head, yellow. Talk about bad colour sense.

The second thing most people with decent observational skills will notice is that the matchstick is huge. Not huge to the extent of the other objects, but it greatly dwarfs it's kind.

The interestingly patterned comb:

This painting may have been painted back in the 1950s but I still see that comb pattern around...either it's a remarkably popular pattern, or there are some remarkably old things lying around my house.

Other than that offhand observation, the comb is rather ordinary apart from (need I say?) the very prominent size.

The cupboard and brush on top:

The cupboard looks like a standard, albeit old fashioned, cupboard fitted with two full length mirrors. The mirrors actually let us see part of the other half of the room. Opposite the cupboard is a window with curtains but apart from that, nothing else can really be seen. The brush on top of the cupboard looks like an ordinary paint brush or a cosmetics brush. Aside from its obvious altered size, it is otherwise remarkably boring.

The bar of soap (which I could not tell was a bar of soap):

My first thought was that the soap was a macaroon. I mean what not? I have yet to see a brown block of soap (or at least it’s not very common) and macaroons can be brown.

The wallpaper:

Unless I have been woefully deprived of the sights of a number of ordinary homes, I feel that I can safely say that I have yet to come across a room with the sky and clouds as a wallpaper. Thus this leads to my conclusion that it is not normal, hence slightly surreal since it is well within the means of humans to use it as wallpaper and for said wallpaper to be actually useful.

What seems to be very prominently showcased in this otherwise normal painting is the scale of the objects.

But what is making the objects seem so big?

Should you disregard the background and compare the items in the room, everything still looks off. In the end, you can sort the items in the room into two groups. The ones that fit the room and the ones that don't. Those fitting the room would be the bed and cupboard and the rest, just not. When the two are separated and viewed independently, the room becomes perfectly normal. The colours of the room are realistic as well, which only serves to highlight the odd scale since it is the only inconsistent factor in the painting.

This piece of work can be interpreted in a number of ways.

All the items in the room have some sort of underlying meaning to them. Even if one should not be familiar with them, the common words associated with the items should surface as sufficient.

They are all ordinary items that we use almost on a daily basis without giving them much though. Bringing them into a more personal place like the bedroom could be a way to show the viewer how much these unsung heroes have been overlooked.

Need a fire?

Light a match! (Of course this would be during the time period where the lighter have yet to be so popular.)

Dirty after a long day at work?

Take a shower with soap!

Unsightly bed hair?

Comb to the rescue!

Need I say more?

Also, since the painting seems to put so much emphasis on the scale, could it too perhaps have a meaning? It can range from something as meaningful as the how much we under appreciate an and item to it being a simple whim.

Or perhaps, Magritte had not much of a reason to pain the artwork?

After all, we are all humans and sometimes we do things on the spur of the moment, in other words, are we trying to dwell too deep into something that simply does not exist in the first place? He could very well just trying to express himself freely without restrictions like the boundless blue sky, or maybe just attempting to show how even the oddest things can mash together to form a nice piece of work.

Ultimately, since Magritte is unfortunate unable to speak, we can never know what the true meaning of the work is. The best we can do is interpret and sometimes that's all that matters. It's amazing that a single piece of artwork can spark off so many different theories on its meaning.

Overall, I feel that this is a rather pleasant piece of work that would work well in most homes, unless yours is one of those unconventional crazy kinds then, oh well...

It's painted rather lightheartedly with no jarring colours or odd shapes. It even is rather meaningful! Though most might not understand the underlying implications and messages the painting holds, it still is easy to understand to a certain degree. It's is realistic, apart from certain scalings and wallpaper, which most people can appreciate. It's not some over the top fantasy surrealist artwork that certain individuals scrunch their noses at, instead it just has this subtle tinge of surrealism that makes it one of a kind.

Presenting...my own value room

The list of things are: picture frames, egg bed, peacock decorations, stuffed toys, laptop, sweets and pencil.

While they may seem random to any other person, these items mean quite a lot to me.

Picture frames:

I was never one to take pictures, so instead of pictures, they are my various doodles inside them. While some of my work can get really bad at times, I do manage to produce a few good pieces that hold memories. Those really deserve to be hanged up and admired.

Egg bed:

Following my devotion to chickens, an egg bed would be nice. Although a little challenging to achieve in reality, it certainly seems nice than sleeping in the stomach to a chicken...that would be mildly disturbing. And it is not just about the egg design, a bed in general is important to me. Sleep has been seeming more appealing as of late so a comfortable bed to ensure a good rest is important.

Peacock decorations:

Just last year ask me about peacocks and I wouldn't be as passionate about them as now. What caused that change? I'm not that sure to be honest. Unlike chickens and cats that I have always loved for a while, the peacock is a new addition that possibly symbolizes my new year...and hopefully and change for the better in the results department.

Stuffed toys:

They are an important part of my life. As long as I can remember, my bed has always had a number of colourful assorted stuffed toys that keep me company when I sleep. However, one in particular has always been with me since I could start recalling...

Laptop:

This is one thing that probably brought me the most entertainment for the past few years. Plus it was very helpful in enabling me to complete my homework. I mean if not for it, this post wouldn't even exist! In the end whether I use the laptop to play games or type out that dreaded IH essay, it is a device that I certainly can't live without.

Sweets:

Sweets are helpful. When I am falling asleep in the middle of a boring assignment, a few sweets can help keep me awake. When I am trying to concentrate on some tough math problems, sweets can help me focus. In other words, sweets serve as some sort of a anchor that help put me in a state to numb the sadness that's comes from homework...that descriptions makes it sound like drugs...

Pencil:

Together with the sweets, it are what keep me from a complete breakdown should there be a power shortage would be my pencil. Since paper is like, almost everywhere, it would be easy to grab some and start drawing to keep myself entertained. Or if I could turn my room floor into a drawable material, it would be great, if not slightly troublesome. (think of all that pencil smudges...)