Wolfgang Paalen: Farewell to Surrealism
Wolfgang Paalen was an Austrian-Mexican artist celebrated for his innovative Surrealist fumages鈥攚orks created by manipulating soot patterns left by a lit candle on paper or canvas. Paalen described his art as an effort 鈥渢o find the invisible within the visible.鈥� Born in Vienna, Austria, he was deeply influenced by his father鈥檚 collection of Old Master paintings. He later studied under Fernand L茅ger in Paris, where he became part of the Surrealist circle, forging connections with Andr茅 Breton, Salvador Dal铆, and Max Ernst.
In 1939, fleeing the Nazi invasion of France, Paalen relocated to Mexico at Frida Kahlo鈥檚 urging, joining a community of European Surrealists that included Leonora Carrington and Leonor Fini. His travels to British Columbia and encounters with indigenous totem poles profoundly shifted his focus, leading to works that explored nature and cosmic forces over intellectual abstraction.
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Wolfgang Paalen was an Austrian-Mexican artist celebrated for his innovative Surrealist fumages鈥攚orks created by manipulating soot patterns left by a lit candle on paper or canvas. Paalen described his art as an effort 鈥渢o find the invisible within the visible.鈥� Born in Vienna, Austria, he was deeply influenced by his father鈥檚 collection of Old Master paintings. He later studied under Fernand L茅ger in Paris, where he became part of the Surrealist circle, forging connections with Andr茅 Breton, Salvador Dal铆, and Max Ernst.
In 1939, fleeing the Nazi invasion of France, Paalen relocated to Mexico at Frida Kahlo鈥檚 urging, joining a community of European Surrealists that included Leonora Carrington and Leonor Fini. His travels to British Columbia and encounters with indigenous totem poles profoundly shifted his focus, leading to works that explored nature and cosmic forces over intellectual abstraction.
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