Page 42 - Studio International - April 1971
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has characterized Heartfield's approach to the Dada riots DADA was born in Zurich, and one of its
same medium) but rather from his desire to envoys, Huelsenbeck, carried the message to
stress the capability of individual, not moves and dies Berlin where the Freie Strasse group around
institutional, will. The comparison with Franz Jung was already prepared to take all the
Heartfield is instructive: whereas Heartfield in Berlin consequences of an act of rebellion.
became more and more concerned with Jung and I had immediately recognized the
photomontage as a direct social weapon, Raoul Hausmann importance of this way of destroying so-called
transforming it into a medium of clarification, `Artistic Culture' and we decided to found 'Club
Hausmann is ultimately far more concerned Dada' as a phalanx of internationalism, with
with internal realities. 'Bricoleur' rather than Huelsenbeck as Ensign.
`scientist', he viewed the material world, and the The first soirée, on 12 April 1918, was still
historical process itself on which Heartfield's partially eclectic, but the effect on the public,
interpretation so heavily leaned, as a caught in an epileptic rage, was tremendous and
composition of contradictions and contingencies, immediate. This was the declaration of
an abstraction to be dismantled and re-examined bankruptcy of all the values sacred to the
within broader terms of reference. Indeed, once bourgeoisie.,
protest alone seemed no longer any use he Some months afterwards the military
abandoned photomontage, broke his ties with collapse in the West and the sailors' mutiny at
Dada and, as he puts it, 'declared Anti-Dada Kiel forced the generals into the armistice of
and Presentist', working with Schwitters, 11 November 1918. This was the Revolution.
Moholy-Nagy and the Constructivists. But he So ended the dreams of German imperialist
was never a Constructivist: 'It was a "dogma" and omnipotent hegemony.
and I, as former Dadaist, was undogmatic.' But The Spartakists were in all the streets,
his activities after the dissolution of Club Dada everywhere, and in a distressed Berlin DADA
extended his continuous preoccupation with rioted.
what he considered, up to his death, the `Whoever stands still will be shot', warned the
psycho-social consciousness of our time, and the chief of police.
necessity of a 'contemporary' expression. 'The No gas, electricity or water in those days.
new man', he wrote in 1921, 'must have the Inspections for the carrying of fire-arms at every
courage to be new.' q street corner, mass demonstrations, Spartakist
3 Raoul Hausmann 7 Raoul Hausmann
The Art Critic 1919 Wood-cut on white Japan paper 1917
Collage 33. 3 x 25 cm
315 x 25 cm Coll : the artist
Coll: Vordemberge-Gildenwart, Stuttgart
4 Hans Richter
Drawing of Raoul Hausmann 1915
5 Raoul Hausmann
Tatlin at Home 1920
Collage
41 x 28 cm
Coll : Marthe Prévot, Limoges
6 Dada-Photo 1919
Raoul Hausmann and Johannes Baader. Berlin
