Un Ami Empressé

Max Ernst French, born Germany

1944

Not on view

Max Ernst was part of the Paris Surrealist circle when World War II forced his departure for the United States. In 1944, working in Long Island, he produced a series of sculptures that embraced the specific location of his new working environment, while returning to his earlier formal experiments, especially with found objects, and subjects, including his avian alter-ego, Loplop. To make this work, Ernst utilized existing kitchen utensils, hardware, and other everyday items for the plaster mold. The final bronze sculpture, of a being that faces in two directions, reflects Ernst’s interests in the dual nature of things.

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Title: Un Ami Empressé
Artist: Max Ernst (French (born Germany), Brühl 1891–1976 Paris)
Date: 1944
Medium: Bronze
Dimensions: 26 3/8 × 14 1/4 × 16 5/8 in. (67 × 36.2 × 42.2 cm)
Classification: Sculpture
Credit Line: Gift of Mireille and James Levy, 2021
Object Number: 2021.2.7
Rights and Reproduction: © 2026 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

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Une semaine de bonté ou Les septs éléments capitaux, Max Ernst French, born Germany, photomechanical reproduction of collages — Une semaine de bonté ou Les septs éléments capitaux
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1934

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