Max Ernst

German, 1891-1976

Max Ernst was a German artist known for his pivotal role in the Dada and Surrealist movements. Born in 1891, he was deeply influenced by the 1912 Sonderbund exhibition, where he encountered works by Van Gogh, Picasso, and Cézanne, a moment that shaped his turn toward experimental, non-traditional artmaking. 

After World War I, Ernst helped establish the Dada movement in Cologne, later relocating to Paris where he became a key figure in Surrealism. His work across painting, collage, sculpture, and printmaking introduced radical innovations, including frottage and grattage—methods that explored chance and subconscious form.  

Ernst’s first American exhibition took place at the Julien Levy Gallery in New York in 1932, followed by inclusion in the landmark 1936 exhibition Fantastic Art, Dada, Surrealism at the Museum of Modern Art. His transatlantic career bridged European modernism and the American avant-garde, contributing to a broad redefinition of 20th-century visual language.  His work is represented in major museum collections worldwide and remains essential to the study of modern art practices.