Max Ernst
Max Ernst
Max Ernstwas a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and Surrealism...
NationalityGerman
ProfessionPainter
Date of Birth2 April 1891
CityBruhl, Germany
CountryGermany
water knows
Before he goes into the water, a diver cannot know what he will bring back.
decorative either felt invention plastic time
Painting is not for me either decorative amusement, or the plastic invention of felt reality; it must be every time: invention, discovery, revelation.
expression giving common
A series of powers are at work within the great stream of Expressionism who have no outward similarity to one another but a common direction of thrust, namely the intention to give expression to things of the psyche [Seelisches] through form alone.
beauty teaching philosopher
Woman's nudity is wiser than the philosopher's teachings.
records able possibility
Collage is a supersensitive and scrupulously accurate instrument, similar to a seismograph, which is able to record the exact amount of the possibility of human happiness at any period.
birth attending
I succeeded in simply attending at the birth of all my works.
christian humility pride
The virtue of pride, which was once the beauty of mankind, has given place to that fount of ugliness, Christian humility.
painting meant-to-be
My paintings are not meant to be tasted.
roles projects painter
The role of the painter . . . is to project that which sees itself in him.
beautiful art ugly
I have never seen a beautiful painting of a beautiful woman. But you can take an ugly woman and make a beautiful painting of her. It is the painting itself that should be beautiful.
bird flesh superiors
And Loplop, bird superior, has transformed himself into flesh without flesh and will dwell among us...
ideas intuition chance
All good ideas arrive by chance.
art men mirrors
Who made art history? Not the most reasonable people. The mad men did. If painting is the mirror of a time, it must be mad to have a true image of what that time is. To one madness we oppose another madness.
reflection artist achievement
When the artist finds himself he is lost. The fact that he has succeeded in never finding himself is regarded by Max Ernst as his only lasting achievement.