Brunidor Portfolio, No. 1
Max Ernst
French and American, born Germany. 1891–1976
Stanley William Hayter
British, 1901–1988
Wifredo Lam
Cuban, 1902–1982
Roberto Matta
Chilean, 1911–2002
Joan Miró
Spanish, 1893–1983
Kurt Seligmann
American, born Switzerland. 1900–1962
Yves Tanguy
American, born France. 1900–1955
1947
A 1947 portfolio of prints (etchings, an engraving, and lithographs) in which Max Ernst blends surreal, biomorphic imagery and playful hand-drawn lettering to fuse picture and word into dreamlike, uncanny scenes.
At first glance you notice balloonlike, organic forms filled with whimsical, irregular typography floating against a flat black ground, producing a collage-like, buoyant effect that feels both improvised and meticulously composed.
The portfolio shows how postwar Surrealism pushed printmaking beyond reproduction into experimental, multimedia territory—Ernst’s mixing of intaglio and lithography and his integration of text helped redefine the print portfolio as a space for poetic, image-text invention.
Medium
Portfolio of five etchings (one with engraving) and two lithographs
Dimensions
composition (see child records): dimensions vary; sheet (each approx.): 16 9/16 × 13" (42 × 33 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Purchase Fund
Accession
342.1947.1-7
Palette
Exhibitions
