Man Ray
When Objects Dream
Published on 2. September 2025
Book
Hardback
338 pages
978-1-58839-802-4 (ISBN)
Description
The first in-depth study of Man Ray's groundbreaking rayographs of the 1920s and their interconnections with his Dada and Surrealist works
This is the first in-depth study of the rayograph (or camera-less photograph) pioneered by Man Ray (1890-1976) in 1920s Paris, between the Dada and Surrealist movements. The transformative, magical qualities of these experiments led the poet Tristan Tzara to describe them as capturing moments "when objects dream." Oscillating between representation and abstraction, the rayograph was ambiguous in its making and subject matter, encapsulating avant-garde concerns of the day. This book highlights connections and shared motifs between the rayographs and Man Ray's paintings, photographs, drawings, objects, and films. Stephanie D'Alessandro and Stephen C. Pinson analyze the artist's innovative methods while also exploring key themes across a broad range of his art production, such as chance, indeterminacy, transformation, and preoccupation with dualities.
Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press
Exhibition Schedule:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
(September 14, 2025-February 1, 2026)
This is the first in-depth study of the rayograph (or camera-less photograph) pioneered by Man Ray (1890-1976) in 1920s Paris, between the Dada and Surrealist movements. The transformative, magical qualities of these experiments led the poet Tristan Tzara to describe them as capturing moments "when objects dream." Oscillating between representation and abstraction, the rayograph was ambiguous in its making and subject matter, encapsulating avant-garde concerns of the day. This book highlights connections and shared motifs between the rayographs and Man Ray's paintings, photographs, drawings, objects, and films. Stephanie D'Alessandro and Stephen C. Pinson analyze the artist's innovative methods while also exploring key themes across a broad range of his art production, such as chance, indeterminacy, transformation, and preoccupation with dualities.
Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press
Exhibition Schedule:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
(September 14, 2025-February 1, 2026)
Reviews / Votes
"The book's essays are in-depth and meticulously researched, uncovering stories behind the artist's most recognised, but little studied, pieces."-Eleanor Sutherland, AestheticaMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
361 color illus.
Dimensions
Height: 260 mm
Width: 237 mm
Thickness: 38 mm
Weight
1742 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-58839-802-4 (9781588398024)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Stephanie D'Alessandro is the Leonard A. Lauder Curator of Modern Art and Senior Research Coordinator in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Stephen C. Pinson is curator in the Department of Photographs, both at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.