René Francois Ghislain Magritte was born in Lessines in the province of Hainaut on 21 November 1898 to Leopold Magritte and Regina Magritte, he was the eldest child born. Before the age of 12 Magritte had taken formal lessons in painting, sketching and drawing. When René was a young boy, his mother committed suicide by drowning. He was said to have been present when his mother's body was pulled from the lake. (Bio-René Magritte) When his mother's body was found it was said that her dress covered her face and this would be the inspiration for his painting. Many people believe that his mother's death was the inspiration for many of his works. After his mother's death, René enrolled at the Academie des Beaux-Arts in Brussels seeking inspiration and a safe distance from the German invasion of World War I. Here Magritte met the three movements that thrilled him: cubism, purism and Metzinger's futurism. In Magritte's early years, around 1915, many of his oil paintings were considered to be Impressionist in style. Between 1916 and 1918 Magritte attended school in Brussels at the Academie Royale des Beaux Arts, only to drop out shortly after because he believed it was a waste of time. During the years 1918 to 1924 René's work began to transform into a more futuristic and cubist style. From 1915 to 1924 all of his pieces had one thing in common: most depicted naked women. In 1922 Magritte married Georgette Berger whom he had known as a child. Magritte and his wife had no children of their own. Magritte worked as a designer in a wallpaper factory from 1922 to 1923 and an advertising designer until 1926. (Wikipedia) By working as a commercial artist Magritte was able to pay his bills. It would be decades before he was able… middle of paper… sure to love. Magritte began with impressionist work, moving on to futurism, cubism and then surrealism, before deciding that surrealism was what he really wanted to paint. Some of his most famous works are The Son of Man, The Mysteries of the Horizon and Golconde. Even though it was a struggle at times, Magritte never gave up on what he wanted to do and did everything he could for him and his wife to have an income. They even tried moving places and starting over only to go back. During his journey he met many new friends and inspired many others as a Surrealist leader. He also encountered critics who were not fans of his work but he never gave up. Magritte continued to create works that challenged his audience and made them think outside the box. It was only after his death that his work finally achieved fame and received the recognition it deserved.