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Home , Kurt Schwitters, Marcel Duchamp, Raoul Hausmann

GDT-101 / HISTORY OF / / Overview i / lv

Dada

1 Dada Origins 1

2 14

3 Höch and Hausmann 28

4 38

5 Dada Legacy 56

6 Conclusion 63

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Japonisme ii / lv

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA 1 / 55

Dada Origins

1916–1922

Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in , Switzerland, during World War I.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 2 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Philosophy

Rejecting all tradition, they sought complete freedom.

They bitterly rebelled against the horrors of war, the decadence of European society, the shallowness of blind faith in technological progress, and the inadequacy of religion and conventional moral codes in a continent in upheaval.

–MEGGS

· © KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 3 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Philosophy

• Reaction to the carnage of World War I • Claimed to be anti- • Had a negative and destructive element

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 , MECHANICAL (THE SPIRIT OF OUR TIME), CIRCA 1920 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 4 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Philosophy

• Literature • Poetry • Visual • Manifestoes • Theatre • Graphic design • Art theory

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 5 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Activities Dada writers and artists were concerned with: • Shock • Protest • Nonsense • Obsurdity • Confrontation

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 DADAISTS IN DISGUISE, ANDRÉ BRETON, RENÉ HILSUM (STANDING), , GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 6 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Activities

• Public gatherings • Demonstrations • Publication of art/literary journals • Art and political criticism

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 DADAISTS AT THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL DADA FAIR IN IN 1920. A MANNEQUIN OF A GERMAN OFFICER WITH THE HEAD OF A PIG HANGS FROM THE CEILING GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 7 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Activities

• Public gatherings • Demonstrations • Publication of art/literary journals • Art and political criticism

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 OPENING OF THE EXHIBITION AT THE GALLERY AU SANS PAREIL, MAY 2, 1921 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 8 / 55

1918 Dada Activities Raoul Hausmann starts the publication of Der Dada

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RAOUL HAUSSMAN, COVER FOR DER DADA, 1917 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 9 / 55

1916–1922 Dada

• Spontaneous chance • Planned decisions Dada’s rejection of art and tradition enabled it to enrich the visual vocabulary started by .

– MEGGS

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 , DAME!, ILLUSTRATION DADAPHONE, NO. 7, PARIS, MARCH 1920 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 10 / 55

1916–1922 Dada Aesthetics

• Dada started as a literary movement • Aesthetic was forged by poets crafting • Nonsense poetry • Chance poetry • Chance placement, absurd titles

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 COVER OF THE FIRST EDITION OF THE PUBLICATION, DADA. EDITED BY . ZÜRICH, 1917 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 11 / 55

Tristan Tzara

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 TRISTAN TZARA, TO MAKE A DADAIST POEM, 1920 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Origins 12 / 55

1920 To make a Dadaist poem

1. Take a newspaper. 2. Take a pair of scissors. 3. Choose an article as long as you are planning to make your poem. 4. Cut out the article. 5. Then cut out each of the words that make up this article and put them in a bag. 6. Shake it gently. 7. Then take out the scraps one after the other in the order in which they left the bag. 8. Copy conscientiously. 9. The poem will be like you. 10. And here you are a writer, infinitely original and endowed with a sensibility that is charming though beyond the

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 TRISTAN TZARA, TO MAKE A DADAIST POEM, 1920 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA 13 / 55

Marcel Duchamp

1887–1968

The French painter Marcel Duchamp joined the Dada movement and became its most prominent visual artist.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 14 / 55

1908-1915 Visual Artist

• influenced his analysis of subjects as geometric planes • Futurism inspired him to convey time and motion

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 15 / 55

1908-1915 Visual Artist

• Cubism influenced his analysis of subjects as geometric planes • Futurism inspired him to convey time and motion

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 16 / 55

1908-1915 Visual Artist

• Cubism influenced his analysis of subjects as geometric planes • Futurism inspired him to convey time and motion

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 17 / 55

1908-1915 Visual Artist

• Cubism influenced his analysis of subjects as geometric planes • Futurism inspired him to convey time and motion

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP, NUDE (STUDY), SAD YOUNG MAN ON A TRAIN, 1911 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 18 / 55

1908-1915 Visual Artist

• Cubism influenced his analysis of subjects as geometric planes • Futurism inspired him to convey time and motion

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP, NUDE DESCENDING A STAIRCASE, NO. 2, 1912 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 19 / 55

By World War I, he had rejected the work of many of his fellow artists (like ) as “retinal” art, intended only to please the eye. Instead, Duchamp wanted to put art back in the service of the mind.

– MEGGS

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 20 / 55

1913 Ready-Made

• Philosophy of absolute freedom • Art and life were processes of random chance and willful choice • Artistic acts became matters of individual decision and selection

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP, BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913 (RECONSTRUCTED 1951) GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 21 / 55

1913 Ready-Made Sculpture

• It was not until he began making readymades a few years later in New York that he decided Bicycle Wheel was a readymade. • Bicycle Wheel is said to be the first kinetic sculpture

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP, BICYCLE WHEEL, 1913 (RECONSTRUCTED 1951) GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 22 / 55

1917 Ready-Made Sculpture

• Philosophy of absolute freedom • Art and life were processes of random chance and willful choice • Artistic acts became matters of individual decision and selection

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP (R. MUTT), , 1917 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 23 / 55

1917

Duchamp described his intent with the piece was to shift the focus of art from physical craft to intellectual interpretation.

–WIKIPEDIA

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP (R. MUTT), FOUNTAIN, 1917 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 24 / 55

1917 “Whether Mr. Mutt made the fountain with his own hands or not has no importance. He CHOSE it. He took an article of life, placed it so that its useful significance disappeared under the new title and point of view—created a new thought for that object.

–

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP (R. MUTT), FOUNTAIN, 1917 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 25 / 55

1919

The public was outraged when Duchamp painted a mustache on a reproduction of the .

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MARCEL DUCHAMP, L.H.O.O.Q., 1919 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 26 / 55

1919

Rose Sélavy was one of the pseudonyms of artist Marcel Duchamp.

The name, a pun, sounds like the French phrase “Eros, c’est la vie”, which translates to English as “Eros, that’s life”. It has also been read as “arroser la vie” (“to make a toast to life”).

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RROSE SÉLAVY (MARCEL DUCHAMP), 1921. PHOTOGRAPH BY . GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA 27 / 55

Höch and Hausmann

1919–1928

Hannah Höch and Raoul Hausmann were creating outstanding work in the medium of as early as 1918.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 28 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 29 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 HANNAH HÖCH, CUT WITH THE KITCHEN KNIFE THROUGH THE BEER-BELLY OF THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC, 1919 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 30 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 HANNAH HÖCH GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 31 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 HANNAH HÖCH GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 32 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 33 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RAOUL HAUSMANN GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 34 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RAOUL HAUSMANN · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 35 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RAOUL HAUSMANN GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Marcel Duchamp 36 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 RAOUL HAUSMANN · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA 37 / 55

Kurt Schwitters

1887–1948

Kurt Schwitters of , Germany, created a nonpolitical offshoot of Dada that he named Merz, coined from the word Kommerz (commerce) in one of his .

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 PORTRAIT OF KURT SCHWITTERS BY , 1924. GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 38 / 55

1919

Schwitters gave Merz meaning as the title of a one-person .

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 39 / 55

1919–1923 Merz

• compositions • Printed ephemera • Rubbish • Found materials • Composition explorations • Color against color • Form against form • Texture against texture

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, DAS MERZBILD, WINTER, 1918–19 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 40 / 55

1919–1923 Merz

According to Schwitters, Merz “denotes essentially the combination of all conceivable materials for artistic purposes.”

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, MADONNA WITH THE CHILD, AND A HORSE, 1921 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 41 / 55

1919–1923 Merz

According to Schwitters, Merz “denotes essentially the combination of all conceivable materials for artistic purposes.”

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, MERZZEICHNUNG 231. BARBIER, 1921 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 42 / 55

1919–1923 Merz

According to Schwitters, Merz “denotes essentially the combination of all conceivable materials for artistic purposes.”

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 43 / 55

1919-1923 Poetry

• Dada poets separated the word from its language context • Played sense against nonsense • Pure visual form, pure sound • Redefined poetry as the interaction of elements: letters, syllables, words, sentences

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, W W PRIIMIITITTII, 1920 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 44 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 MERZ PUBLICATIONS GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 45 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLI O· GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 46 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLIO GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 47 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLI O· GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 48 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLI O· GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 49 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLI O· GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 50 / 55

1923-1932 Merz Publication

• Schwitters sporadically published 22 issues of Merz • The third issue comprises a portfolio of six unbound lithographs • His complex designs combined Dada’s elements of nonsense, surprise, and chance with strong design properties.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, PLATE FROM MERZ 3, KURT SCHWITTERS 6 LITHOS, MERZ PORTFOLI O· GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 51 / 55

1923-1937 Merzbau

Schwitters also dramatically altered the interiors of a number of spaces throughout his life.

The most famous was the Merzbau, the transformation of six (or possibly more) rooms of the family house in Hanover, Germany.

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 52 / 55

1923-1937 Merzbau

• Started in 1923 • First room finished in 1933 • Schwitters flees to in 1937 • Destroyed in an Allied bombing raid in 1943

KURT SCHWITTERS, MERZBAU, HANNOVER, GERMANY © KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 53 / 55

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 KURT SCHWITTERS, MERZBAU, HANNOVER, GERMANY. PHOTO BY WILHELM REDEMANN, 1933 GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA / Kurt Schwitters 54 / 55

1981-1983 Merzbau Reconstruction

• Dr • Exhibition “Tendencies Toward the Total ,” • The MERZ Building represented an “indispensible central work” • Commissioned Peter Bissegger, (Switzerland) to reconstruct Merzbau • Installed in the Hanover

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015 · GDT-101 / HISTORY OF GRAPHIC DESIGN / DADA 55 / 55

Conclusion

Dada’s contribution to the visual arts outlasted its founding practitioners and continues to emerge in artistic movements in the present day.

The movement influenced later styles like the Russian Avant-Garde, , , , Post- and even Punk Rock.

– MEGGS

© KEVIN WOODLAND, 2015