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The Doll

Hans Bellmer German, born Poland
1934–35
Not on view
Bellmer's obsession with dolls-his endless fabrication, reconstitution, and photographic presentation of them-was an effort to construct objects that would articulate his tortured desires in material form. The bizarre, robotic temptress in this negative print has an eerie electric aura. To love her, one would have to have, as the Surrealist poet Pierre Reverdy wrote, a "short circuit in the heart-system."

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Doll
  • Artist: Hans Bellmer (German (born Poland), Katowice 1902–1975 Paris)
  • Date: 1934–35
  • Medium: Gelatin silver print
  • Dimensions: 29.5 x 19.4 cm (11 5/8 x 7 5/8 in.)
  • Classification: Photographs
  • Credit Line: Ford Motor Company Collection, Gift of Ford Motor Company and John C. Waddell, 1987
  • Object Number: 1987.1100.15
  • Rights and Reproduction: © 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
  • Curatorial Department: Photographs

More Artwork

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Die Puppe
Multiple artists/makers
1934
La Poupée, Hans Bellmer German, born Poland, Gelatin silver print with applied color
La Poupée
Hans Bellmer
1938
Jean Arp, Hans Bellmer German, born Poland, Graphite with white chalk on gray paper
Jean Arp
Hans Bellmer
1957
La Poupée, Hans Bellmer German, born Poland, Gelatin silver print
La Poupée
Hans Bellmer
ca. 1934
La Poupeé, Hans Bellmer German, born Poland, Gelatin silver print with applied color
La Poupeé
Hans Bellmer
ca. 1936

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