MAN RAY: PHOTOGRAPHIEN PARIS 1920–1934

Photographer: Man Ray
Introduction: Andreas Haus
Texts: Man Ray, Paul Éluard, André Breton, Marcel Duchamp & Tristan Tzara
Printed in Germany by: Passavia, Passau
Publisher: Schirmer/Mosel, Munich

Year: 1980. First edition.
Format: Softcover (paperback)
Language: German
ISBN: 3-921375-51-7
Condition: Fine. No visible defects or signs of wear; clean and exceptionally well-preserved copy.

The work of Man Ray occupies a singular position within the history of twentieth-century photography, situated at the intersection of photography, painting, cinema, experimentation, and the radical artistic movements that emerged in Europe during the interwar period.

This publication, introduced by Andreas Haus, brings together texts by a remarkable group of writers and artists closely associated with the intellectual and artistic circles surrounding Surrealism and Dada: Paul Éluard, André Breton, Marcel Duchamp, and Tristan Tzara, alongside Man Ray himself. Their writings provide an essential framework through which to approach Man Ray's photographic practice, not simply as an exercise in image-making, but as part of a broader avant-garde investigation into chance, desire, the unconscious, and the transformation of everyday objects and bodies.

Man Ray's photographs repeatedly challenged conventional distinctions between art and photography. Through techniques such as solarization, experimentation with negative and positive forms, and the deliberate manipulation of photographic processes, he developed a visual language that allowed photography to function as a site of invention rather than mere representation. His proximity to figures such as Duchamp, Breton, Éluard, and Tzara was fundamental to the development of this expanded photographic vocabulary.

Published by Schirmer/Mosel, Munich, in 1980, this first edition presents Man Ray's work within a distinctly European intellectual and historical context. Printed in Germany by Passavia in Passau, the volume reflects the publisher's longstanding engagement with modern and contemporary photography and its critical histories.

A significant publication for understanding the dialogue between photography, Dada, and Surrealism, the book brings together Man Ray's images with the voices of the artists and writers who helped define the avant-garde culture in which his work emerged.