Why would Rene Margritte wish to place the painting in front of the window so that the painting looks as if it could be the landscape outside? The view of the painting is at a slight angle so that the viewers can see the edge of the painting, distinguishing the painting from the outside. The painting could have been seen head on, so that the two could have been almost interchangeable. Why does the viewer need to see the difference between the two?
The answer lies in perception and reality. Perhaps the painting is shown to be a painting because there is a difference between perception and reality. The edge of the painting serves as the line between the painter’s perception, the painting, and reality, the landscape. The view behind the painting could be exactly the same as the painting, or vastly different. The painter’s perception blocks what truly is from the viewer’s point of view.
The view from the open window is all the painter sees. The painter can only see the world from that one angle, perhaps that view is skewed, perhaps it is perfectly correct, but it shows that we as viewers can never experience life through another’s eyes. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”, as are all aspects of life. One’s vision is one’s own, no other person can ever fully understand and experience as another does.
The painting’s edge shows the line between the perceptions of the painter versus the reality of nature. Each is a reality to someone, but neither can be a reality to everyone. The painting represents the blended reality of a person’s mind, in this case, the painter’s.
