The artwork, titled “This is Not an Apple,” was created by the artist René Magritte in 1964 in Belgium. It belongs to the Surrealist art movement and is classified as a symbolic painting.
The artwork features a large, realistic depiction of an apple with leaves attached to its stem, painted with meticulous detail against a plain background. Above the apple, the phrase “Ceci n’est pas une pomme,” which translates to “This is not an apple,” is written in elegant cursive script. This paradoxical statement challenges the viewer’s perception and invites contemplation about the nature of representation and reality. The juxtaposition of the text with the vividly rendered image exemplifies Magritte’s characteristic exploration of surrealism, drawing attention to the disconnection between words and the objects they describe.
