Michael Semff og Anthony Spira (red.): Hans Bellmer (tysk)

The Surrealists’ fascination for dolls and machines resembling humans is especially evident in the work of Hans Bellmer (1902-1975), the subject of this comprehensive monograph. Rejecting the Nazis’ Aryan ideals, the artist began in 1933 to create disturbing dolls out of wax, wood, flax, plaster, and glue, equipped with wigs and glass eyes. Photographs of these fetishistic objects were published in Minotaure, the Surrealists’ magazine, and eagerly supported by members of André Breton’s circle. After emmigrating to Paris, Bellmer developed his erotic obsessions through art, influenced by the writings of the Marquis de Sade and Georges Bataille, and collaborated with his companion, the German artist Unica Zürn. Deeply involved in Freudian discourse, his drawings, lithographs, and photographs investigate psychoanalytical theories around hysteria and transference, and reveal a singular exploration into the relationship between language and body.