In the history of art, there is a desire for innovation, but among all movements, a special approach stands out - Dadaism. Embodying the art of negation, Dada represents an extraordinary and turbulent wave of creativity that emerged in the early 20th century. This movement didn't just create works of art; it rejected tradition, ridiculed generally accepted standards and embodied chaos in the very act of creativity. Let's dive into the world of Dada, where art becomes an act of rebellion and negation.
Dada: A Revolution in the Art of Denial
“Art is a rebellion against everyday life. Dada is my way of saying: “Enough!” - Jean Arp
Dadaism or dada is an avant-garde nihilistic movement (mostly in painting and literature) that originated in Switzerland during the First World War and lasted from 1916 to 1922. After this, French Dada merged with surrealism, and German with expressionism. This style arose as a reaction to the horrors of war, the senselessness of destroying human lives. The Dadaists considered rationalism and logic to be the main causes of all armed conflicts, so the fundamental values of their artistic movement were cynicism, lack of aesthetics, denial of standards, irrationality and disappointment.
Yes, yes, you understood everything correctly
Double agreement, familiar to the ear, is only one of the origins of the term “dada”. According to one legend, it appeared thanks to the Austrian writer Richard Huelsenbeck, who randomly stuck a knife into the dictionary, and the word into which the tip hit (“dada” is a French colloquial expression for a toy rocking horse) became the name for a new creative movement.
According to another version, the word “dada” was discovered in the dictionary by one of the founders of the movement, Tristan Tzara. In a manifesto of 1918, he wrote: “In the language of the Negro tribe of Cru, it means the tail of a sacred cow, in some areas of Italy this is what they call a mother... <...> This could also be a reproduction of incoherent infant babble. In any case, something completely meaningless, which from now on became the most successful name for the entire movement.”
Probably, this word was chosen precisely because of its universality: the fact that it had different meanings (or none at all) in different languages reflected the internationality of the entire Dadaist movement.
Key points
1. Dada was the first conceptual art movement whose representatives did not focus on creating aesthetically pleasing objects. Their goal was to turn bourgeois morality on its head, and this gave rise to many difficult questions regarding society, the role of the artist and the purpose of art.
2. Representatives of Dadaism were so against any manifestations of bourgeois culture that they did not even particularly like them themselves. “Dada is anti-Dada,” they shouted. The fact that the group was created at Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich was of particular significance. This establishment was named after the 18th century satirist, who in his famous work “Candide” ridiculed the stupidity of contemporary society. As Hugo Ball, one of the founders of both cabaret and Dadaism, wrote, “Dadaism is the Candide of our time.”
3. Artists like Jean Arp believed it was very important to leave some part of the execution of their work to chance. This approach was contrary to all the norms of creating works of art, where each work had to be carefully planned and completed. The introduction of an element of chance was one of the Dadaists’ forms of protest against traditional canons in art, as well as an attempt to find an answer to the question of the role of the artist in the creative process.
4. Among other things, the Dadaists are known for the use of so-called “readymades” - everyday objects that can be purchased and presented as a work of art with minimal intervention by the artist. The use of readymades has raised questions about artistic creativity, the very definition of what can be considered art, and its purpose in society.
Dadaism: Art Born in the Shadows of War and Born in the Refusal of Reality
"Dada: a bright light in the shadows of everyday life, causing shock and rejection to awaken the consciousness." - Francis Picabia
During the First World War, Switzerland remained neutral, which turned it into a kind of “island of freedom” for artists from all over Europe (mostly from France and Germany). Among these refugees from the war was the German poet and playwright Hugo Ball, who opened the institution in Zurich that became the birthplace of Dada - Cabaret Voltaire.
Poets and artists stranded in the safety of Switzerland in the midst of war should have been relieved to have escaped. However, instead they felt impotent rage: they were outraged by modern society and its reaction to current events. Therefore, they decided to express their protest using the means available to them, to turn art into anti-art. After all, society won’t care about it anyway. Writers and poets began to generously flavor their works with curses and dubious humor. Artists mastered visual puns and began using everyday objects in their works.
One of the most outrageous of these works was a “painting” by Marcel Duchamp called “L.H.O.O.Q.” The artist took a postcard with the image of the “Mona Lisa”, drew a mustache and a goatee on it and signed it with a meaningless abbreviation at first glance, behind which an obscene phrase in French is hidden.
Hugo Ball said: “For us, art is not an end in itself. This is an opportunity to truly perceive and critique the times in which we live.” The first true Dadaists gathered in his Cabaret “Voltaire” - the poet Tristan Tzara, the actress and poetess Emmy Hennings, the artist Jean Arp, the artist and architect Marcel Janco, the writer Richard Huelsenbeck, the artist Sophie Teuber, the artist Hans Richter and many others. They talked about art during the war, developed the ideology of their movement and sometimes staged performances on the small stage of the cafe.
It is important to understand that Dadaism was not just a beautiful, pretentious pose, and the Dadaists were not mere amateurs. Participants in the movement felt such fear and despair at the horrors of war that they decided to embody it in an art form that could evoke the same shock and fear in the public. None of the works of the Dadaists that have survived to this day can be called aesthetically pleasing - the absence of any aesthetics, in general, was their goal. Artists most often preferred collages, and sculptors preferred “ready-made objects.” Art critics believe that there is a completely reasonable explanation for this choice. Collage, in their opinion, is a technique in itself disordered and even anarchic, a technique with the help of which torn pieces of outdated illustrations and lines of text are arbitrarily folded into a bewildering whole. In the case of sculptures, it is even simpler: as objects of their creativity, the Dadaists chose objects that are not only impossible to perceive as works of art, but in principle it is not customary to look at them: rusty bicycle wheels, broken bottles and crumpled cans, old furniture with splintered boards, discarded rags and household items that are no longer in use.
Short century
Dadaism quickly spread throughout Europe and (largely thanks to Marcel Duchamp) even reached America. The Dadaists published their own magazine to convey their anti-war and anti-art ideas to the masses. In 1918, after the end of the war, many of them left Switzerland for their native countries, but the life of Dada continued.
Richard Huelsenbeck founded the Dada Club in Berlin; the work of its members, due to its geographical location, was mostly politically charged. They opposed the Weimar Republic, created satirical paintings and collages, and drew political cartoons. In 1919, Kurt Schwitters, expelled from the Berlin group, created his own in Hannover, but was its only member. Another influential group of German Dadaists existed in Cologne, led by Max Ernst and Johannes Theodor Bargeld.
The main figures of French Dada were Andre Breton, Louis Aragon, Paul Eluard and Francis Picabia. They were later joined by Tristan Tzara and Jean Arp. Picabia, however, quickly left the circle of French Dadaists, finally accusing them of turning the movement into what Dadaism initially fought against - into something mediocre, mediocre and generally accepted.
During the First World War, New York became as much a refuge for people of art as Zurich. Picabia and Duchamp arrived here in 1915, and both traveled frequently to and from Europe. During this period, Duchamp began to present his first readymades to the public, and Picabia published his magazine 391, dedicated to Dadaism, in New York (among other cities).
The history of Dada goes back only six years. But he was not destined to exist for long. We can say that Dadaism was initially programmed for self-destruction. Participants in the movement did not strive to create something that would glorify their names for centuries. And Dada itself simply fell apart and became fertilizer for other styles. Apart from the few works of Dadaists kept in museums around the world, the only reminder of them is the famous Cabaret “Voltaire” in Zurich, which was turned into a museum.
Dadaism in Signs: Iconic Creations of Artists and Designers of the Movement
“In the world of Dada, signs become a substitute for words, and paintings become a language different from the usual one. We speak a new language of chaos.” - Marcel Duchamp
The universe of Dadaism is revealed through signs and symbols that have become key in the work of outstanding artists and designers of this art movement. Amidst the whirlwind of chaos and denial, they created works where signs turn into powerful questions and statements, vibrating with shades of the absurd. Let's dive into the world of iconic Dada works, where every line and color becomes the embodiment of rebellion and art
Francis Picabia, "Here, this is Stieglitz"
Picabia was a French artist who shared many of the ideas of Dadaism, and even proclaimed some himself. He delighted in going against tradition and, throughout his 45-year creative life, invented new ways of working. Early in his career, Picabia worked closely with Alfred Stieglitz, who organized his first solo exhibition in New York. However, in 1915, the artist paints this mechanical “portrait”, in which Stieglitz’s criticism is clearly visible: Picabia depicts him in the form of a broken old camera, set to neutral speed of the gearbox and brake lever. All these details, like the word “Ideal” written in Gothic script, symbolize the outdated values of the art of the past and the old-fashionedness of Stieglitz himself. The drawing, dedicated to the famous photographer, became part of Picabia's series of mechanical portraits, although the artist himself was not a big fan of progress.
Marcel Duchamp, "Fountain"
Marcel Duchamp became the first artist to use readymades in his work. And the subject chosen for the first such work became a kind of challenge and provocation not only for critics and viewers, but even for his fellow artists. Duchamp's artistic intervention was minimal here: he simply turned the urinal over and signed it with a fictitious name. By removing this object from its usual environment and placing it in an artistic environment, Duchamp questioned the very definition of art and the role of the artist in the creation of art objects. The uncompromising boldness of this work turned her into something of an icon of the Dadaists, one of whose main values was the utmost irreverence towards artistic traditions. The Fountain had a huge influence on 20th century artists, including Jeff Koons, Robert Rauschenberg and Damien Hirst.
Jean Arp, "Squares Arranged According to the Laws of Chance"
This work became part of a series of collages by Jean Arp, the creation of which he relied on chance. The artist cut out squares of contrasting colors from paper, then dropped them onto a large sheet of paper and glued them exactly where they fell. The result was always unpredictable, like Chinese fortune telling with coins. Most likely, the reason for the emergence of this technique was Arp's disappointment in traditional ways of creating geometric patterns. Arp's collages became a clear illustration of one of the main goals of Dadaism as “anti-art” - to rely on chance, challenging traditional ways of creating art objects.
Raoul Hausmann, "The Spirit of Our Times"
This assemblage was intended to reflect Hausmann's frustration with the German government and its inability to make the changes necessary to create a better country. It is an ironic, sculptural illustration of Houseman's belief that the average member of society “has no more opportunity than the one whose fate is glued to the outside of his skull; his brain remains empty.” In his work, Houseman used the hatter's mannequin as a symbol of a blockhead who can only experience what can be measured mechanically. To do this, various tools are attached to his head: a ruler, a tape measure, a pocket watch, a box with a typewriter wheel, brass camera handles, a holey telescopic cup and an old wallet.
Max Ernst, "The Chinese Nightingale"
In 1919–1920, Max Ernst created a series of collages using photomontage. They depicted strange hybrid creatures, “glued together” from images of military equipment, human limbs and various accessories. He combined the fearsome elements of weapons with softer parts and gave his works lyrical titles. These works certainly had special significance for Ernst, who was injured during the war due to gun recoil. In “The Chinese Nightingale,” for example, the artist used an English bomb as the body of an unknown creature, complementing it with the arms and fan of an oriental dancer. He placed an eye on the bomb bracket, turning it into the likeness of a strange bird.
Man Ray, "Rayograph"
Man Ray was an American photographer who spent most of his creative life in Paris. In the 1920s, he began his photographic experiments, which he called "rayographs." He placed various objects on photographic paper and then exposed them to light. The photographs left a ghostly “imprint” of the objects, completely unlike any other image of them. The first of these photographs, in the best traditions of Dadaism, was taken by accident. And while other Dadaists explored the boundaries of the possible in painting and sculpture, Man Ray did the same in photography. Thanks to him, she ceased to be a mirror image of reality.
In the world of signs and symbols created by the Dadaists, we discover an inexhaustible source of creative energy and protest. These signs perfectly express the spirit of the times, saturated with chaos, contradictions and denial. Dadaism, as the art of negation, continues to inspire contemporary artists and designers, calling for liberation from tradition and creative rebellion. In the iconic works of this movement we find not only a reflection of the era, but also an eternal challenge to art and society, which continues to resonate in every symbol left by the Dadaists as a legacy.
Dada remains an inexhaustible source of inspiration and mystery in the art world. In its denial and chaos we discover something unique and exciting - an attempt to reproduce the storm of time through art. The Dadaists stood against tradition, creating works that defied conventional rules and broke stereotypes. In their work, signs and symbols become keys to doors to fictional worlds and philosophical mysteries. Dadaism is a challenge to everyday life, an invitation to freedom of thought and rethinking of established truths. This movement continues to vibrate in our consciousness, reminding us that art can be not only a mirror of reality, but also a gateway to the world of fantasy and freedom of expression.
In our unique catalog, we provide the opportunity to experience the magic of paintings through a wide range of works from different genres and eras. Here, each painting becomes a virtual portal into the world of denial, rebellion and creative freedom. As you delve into the collection, you can enjoy the variety of signs and symbols created by talented artists. These pieces will not only decorate your space, but also be a source of inspiration, reminding you of the power of the art of denial in the modern world.