Famous Dada Artwork

Dadaism was an avant garde artistic cultural movement that was prompted by the European societal climate after WW I. This movement rejected modern capitalism, bourgeoirs culture, and wartime politics that aligned with other far-left radical groups. Non-traditional art materials was used along with satire and nonsensical content. Dada was meant to be a word with no meaning.

Fountain 1917 Marcel Duchamp

French artist Marcel Duchamp was one of the most prolific artists of Dadaism. He created infamous painting, collages, and sculptures. He was also associated with Cubism, Futurism, and early conceptual art.

This artwork is one of the most iconic artworks of the 20th century. It is one of the earliest examples of "lowbrow" ot "ready-made" sculptures.

L.H.O.O.Q. 1919 Marcel DuChamp

French artist Marcel Duchamp created another "redy-made" sculpture that was created from an inexpensive postcard of the Mona Lisa by italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. the artist drew a waxed mustache and goatee. It features satiric elements.

Construction for Nobel Ladies 1919 Kurt Schwitters

German artist Kurt Schwitters experimented with different mediums among them painting, sculpture, graphic design, installation art, and poetry. Besides Dadaism he was associated with Surrealism, Cubism, and Constructivism.

This artwork is an example of the artist's use of abstraction in collage and sculpture. It reflects the "found object" style of sculpture. The piece wass created with broken and disjointed materials among them a funnel, a metal toy train, and broken wheels. The artwork also includes a horizontal portrait of a noble lady giving it the title.

The Art Critic (1919-20) Raoul Hausmann

Austrian artist Raoul Hausmann was a prominent artist and leader of the Dada movement in Berlin, Germany. He focused mostly on photographic collage and poetry.

This artwork is a photo collage created with magazine and newspaper photos and includes drawn elements. It is considered to be "lowbrow" as it uses materials and iconography seen in popular culture.

The Mechanical Head 1920 Raoul Hausmann

Austrian artist Raoul Hausman created this artwork in 1920 and it became his most famous artwork. The art piece was crested from a hairdresser's wig dummy, a ruler, a pocket watch, a wallet, and pieces from a camera among other items. The artwork is considered to be a commentry on how humanity interacts with objects and the surrounding world. You can see the face is devoid of expression with objects attached to it.

Cut with Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer-Belly Epoch of Germany (1919-20) Hannah Hoch

German artist Hannah Hoch was a member of the Dadism movement. He was a pioneer of the photomontage or photo collage technique. She used image from popular media.

This artwork represents the juxtaposition between Dadaism and mainstream culture during this time. The members of dominant political groups such as the Weimar government and the army are put together in one part of the photo collage. The other side features communists, artists, and other radicals. The artist also included a small map displaying European countries that allowed women to vote.

Shirt Front and Fork 1922 Jean Arp

German-French artist, sculptor, and poet Jean Arp was also known as Hans Arp. He was a founding member of the Dadaist movement. His artwork is known to explore the unconscious - the elements of satire and the abstraction of organic forms.

This artwork is part of a series of painted wooden relief sculptures. The fork is easily identifiable but the shirt front resembles some other things.

Optophone I 1922 Francis Picabia

French artist and poet Francis Picabia was associated not only with Dadism but also with Impressionism, Cubism, and Pontillism. His most famous artworks were created with color blocks, geometric shapes, and abstractions.

This artwork is an example of the artist's "machinist" artworks. It was inspired by the early 20th century industrial equipment. The artwork simulates the effects of an optophone, a device using sonification for scan texts and images to help the blind identify letters on a page. The center of the piece shows a classical-style seated nude woman.

Dances at the Spring Francis Picabia

French artist and poet Francis Picabia created this early abstraction with flat angle forms to evoke the motion of dancing women. This remains a pivotal example of early Cubist and Dadaist experimentation.

Ubu Emperator 1923 Max Ernst

German artist, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet Max Ernst was an early member of the Dadaism and Surrealism movements.

This artwork represents his stylistic shift between Dadaism and Surrealism. It depicts a spinning anthropomorphic top with incongruent features. It portrays the father Ubu, a symbol of authority and greed seen in a series of plays by Alfred Jerry.