How did World War I keep Piet Mondrian in the Netherlands?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Piet Mondrian Mondrian, photograph by Arnold Newman, 1942.

In the summer of 1914, Piet Mondrian traveled from Paris to the Netherlands to visit his father, who was seriously ill. The subsequent outbreak of World War I prevented him from returning to France, forcing him to remain in his home country.1

During this period, Mondrian settled in Laren, where he became acquainted with the theosophical philosopher M.H.J. Schoenmaekers. This encounter proved pivotal, as Schoenmaekers’ theories on the symbolic meaning of lines and the mathematical construction of the universe deeply influenced Mondrian’s artistic vision. These ideas helped him refine his formal vocabulary and pushed his work toward the total abstraction for which he became famous.1