Federico the Fearless, 1964,
glass sculpture, 15"ÓH
Max Ernst
From the Collection of 
William A. and Phyllis G. Koehnline

September - October 2000

Curator: Nathan Harpaz


This exhibition at the William A. Koehnline Gallery presents the highlights of the Koehnline's Ernst collection. The show emphasizes the relation of the artist to science and nature and demonstrates Ernst's innovative techniques.
Max Ernst (1891-1976) participated in two important movements in modern art history: Dada and Surrealism. He also developed two significant techniques, collage and frottage, that gave new options to artists. Historians suggest that as a self-taught artist, Ernst's lack of formal training allowed him the freedom to explore new and unconventional techniques to accomplish his artistic goals. In exploring unique applications, Ernst behaved somewhat like a scientist, except that his investigations of science and nature were not undertaken objectively, but through personal psychological analysis.
(from the exhibition's catalog)

Untitled, 1946, Arizona, gouache on paper mounted on wood, 5 3/16" x 3 5/8"

Teenage Lightning, from Natural History, 1926, collotype, about 20" x 13"

Page 16 from The Meaning of Beauty in Exact Natural Science, 1971, lithograph, 
about 15" x 11" 

 
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