Ernst, Max

Max Ernst was one of the painters whose art was strongly influenced by his experiencing not one, but two, world wars. In 1919, on returning from his mission in Poland, he - as Dadamax - joined his friend Hans Arp in Dadaistic experiments, directly influenced by his traumatising experiences and his hatred of war. Subsequently, his paintings became more surreal. He invented magical worlds and created anti-art that rebelled against any aesthetic and social norms.
 

Max Ernst’s extensive graphic work can be traced back to 1919 and comprises everything that can be done with the medium of paper: individual and sequences of prints, book designs (illustrated artists’ books and writings with original prints and cover designs) and posters. He studied the most common printing techniques and produced lithographs, etchings, engravings and silkscreen prints. He also further developed old methods such as frottage, which helped him to use his collages and drawings for printmaking. His last signed graphic work is a lithography in three colour variants. It was produced in March 1976, a few days before he died.