Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level F , Case X, Shelf 989, Box B

Max Ernst

Photograph
1946 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The Surrealist Max Ernst (1891–1976) had a significant influence on Frederick Sommer. They first met in 1941 and became closer when Ernst moved to Arizona in 1946, where Sommer also lived. In his portrait of Ernst, Sommer uses double exposure, combining a photograph of the artist with one of water stains on cement. In doing so, he evokes the Surrealist technique of frottage (rubbing) and transforms an otherwise straightforward portrait into an uncanny homage.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleMax Ernst (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
photographic paper, photography
Brief description
'Max Ernst', 1946 photograph by Frederick Sommer (1905-1999)
Physical description
Portrait of Max Ernst.
Dimensions
  • Height: 19cm
  • Width: 24cm
Gallery label
Arizona avant-garde These two photographs show Sommer's mastery of photographic technique and his engagement with the ideas and practices of Surrealism. Sommer settled in Prescott, Arizona, in 1935. In the same year he travelled to New York to show his drawings to Alfred Stieglitz, the great pioneer of modern photography. This encounter, and the introduction to other artists associated with Stieglitz's gallery, had a decisive impact on Sommer. The following year he also met Edward Weston, whose photographs he greatly admired. Stieglitz and Weston became mentors and encouraged Sommer to pursue his interest in photography. Another significant influence was the Surrealist Max Ernst. They first met in 1941 and became closer when Ernst also moved to Arizona in 1946. In his portrait of Ernst, Sommer uses double exposure, combining a photograph of the artist with one of water stains on cement. In doing so, he evokes the Surrealist technique of 'frottage' (rubbing) and transforms an otherwise straightforward portrait into an uncanny homage.
Credit line
Given by the photographer
Subject depicted
Summary
The Surrealist Max Ernst (1891–1976) had a significant influence on Frederick Sommer. They first met in 1941 and became closer when Ernst moved to Arizona in 1946, where Sommer also lived. In his portrait of Ernst, Sommer uses double exposure, combining a photograph of the artist with one of water stains on cement. In doing so, he evokes the Surrealist technique of frottage (rubbing) and transforms an otherwise straightforward portrait into an uncanny homage.
Collection
Accession number
E.997-1993

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Record createdJuly 30, 2003
Record URL
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