Modernist artist Man Ray and the Dada movement - Research Paper Example

Man Ray and Dada Movement Biography Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), born in August 27, 1890 was of an immigrant Russian-Jewish family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents were Melach Radnitzky and Manya Radnitzky. In 1897, Melach and his family moved to Brooklyn, New York. As he familiarized with Brooklyn, Emmanuel developed greater curiosity towards his surroundings. His interest widened to include ballistics, male and female anatomy, as well as mathematics (Baldwin 34).2 At the age of seven, Man Ray received first, as a birthday gift, a box of crayons from one of his cousins.

He from then spent much of his time creating and drawing colorful pictures. At his early age of 14, Emmanuel Radniztky's high school equipped him with free hand and mechanical drawing. He gained much perspective of art and impressive fame through his studies and devotion to drawing. In his second year, his classmates frequently taunted him because of his name. This led to his adoption of the pseudonym Man Ray (Baldwin 48).2 Man Ray and the formal world of art The movement by Man Ray led to his joining Marcel Duchamp’s revolt towards aesthetic tradition. . Independent men living beyond nationalism and war lived for other ideals.

In his multiplicity nature, Man Ray needed escape from the insularity caused by his ethnicity. His emergence responded to the anti-individual and the collective experience of the First World War. Dada allowed Man Ray practice his art in enhancing acceptance and independence of his framework. Dada failed in sustaining itself within New York. Man Ray wrote a letter to the Dadaist Tristan Tzara before entry into Paris. This nihilist Tristan Tzara was of an avant-garde Romanian performance artist, journalist, playwright, film director, art critic and poet (Dachy & Michael 14).

4 His heated personality, as well as the uncompromising activism, caused many conflicts in the Dada movement, in France 3and Romania. Despite of him not leaving Dada, Tristan Tzara took up Surrealism eventually (Masters 14).5 He developed his painting career as an apprentice in an engraving studio after completing his studies. He also served as an illustrator and a draftsman in an advertising agency. Man Ray started taking drawing classes in Manhattan’s Ferrer Modern School where he learnt the world of photography and Alfred Stieglitz.

The artist's creation by Pablo Picasso and Paul Cezanne tremendously inspired him. Dada and Surrealism encouraged Ray’s artistic work. Artistic ideas motivated him more than the artistic work itself. Despite his abstract paintings, Man Ray disregarded traditional superiority on photography. He used photography in documenting sculptures with no independent life and capturing activities by the avant-garde friends (Bardis 215).6 In 1915, his first solo exhibition happened at the Daniel Gallery.