La reproduction interdite (Not to be reproduced)

The thing that interested the Belgian surrealist artist Magritte was the mystery that lay in everyday visible reality. He was not so much inspired by the invisible, the subconscious and dream images but rather by ordinary objects to which he gave a twist. The man Magritte portrays here is the eccentric wealthy Englishman Edward James. He was a friend of the artist and bought various works from him. In the 1930s Edward James was the benefactor of both Dalí and Magritte. Magritte based the portrait on a photograph he made of Edward James looking at the painting 'On the threshold of freedom'. [Source: Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen]

More links:
https://www.renemagritte.org/not-to-be-reproduced.jsp