Artist
Hans Bellmer (German, 1902–1975)German, 1902–1975
CultureGerman
Titles
- La Poupée, Berlin
Date1935, printed 1935–1938
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 18 7/8 × 18 7/8 in. (48 × 48 cm)
Sheet: 18 7/8 × 18 7/8 in. (48 × 48 cm)
Sheet: 18 7/8 × 18 7/8 in. (48 × 48 cm)
Credit LineGift of Marla and Andrew J Sobel
Object number2024.1097
Current Location
The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building
Gallery 208
On view
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Department
PhotographyObject Type
Created as the Nazis rose to power, La Poupée, Berlin embodies Hans Bellmer’s personal and political frustrations while addressing the failures of Western society to contain the base needs and violent impulses of humanity. Building off the doll as a symbol of childhood innocence and exploration, Bellmer plays out dark fantasies that manifest the constrictions of gender identity and sexual expression. To Bellmer and other Surrealists, dolls and automatons became stand-ins for the disconnect between the human body and modern life.
ProvenanceThe artist; given to Paul Éluard in the later 1930s or early 1940s; given to Alain and Jacqueline Trutat, likely between 1946–1952; purchased by a private collector, France, 1990s; [purchased by private dealer, Paris, 2011 via two intermediaries]; [purchased by Vintage Works, Ltd., Chalfont, Pennsylvania, 2011]; purchased by Andrew Sobel, Los Angeles, 2011; given to MFAH, 2024.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
[No inscriptions recto or verso]
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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