Surrealism at Atelier 17
- Special Exhibition
James and Hanna Bartlett Prints and Drawings Galleries
James and Hanna Bartlett Prints and Drawings Galleries
About The Exhibition
The print workshop Atelier 17—based in Paris and, later, New York City—dramatically expanded the possibilities of printmaking. Opened by British artist Stanley William Hayter in 1927, Atelier 17 specialized in intaglio techniques—especially etching and engraving, both of which involved incising a printing plate—using these traditional processes as a starting point from which to develop new and revolutionary methods.
Beyond printmaking techniques, Atelier 17 was also instrumental in the development of Surrealism, an influential art movement that began in Paris during the early 1920s and examined dreams and the unconscious. Important Surrealists, such as Max Ernst and André Masson, explored these new ideas through printmaking at Atelier 17’s Paris location. When the studio relocated to New York in 1940, at the onset of World War II, its artists did the same and brought their innovative style with them.
In New York, these European artists worked alongside both emerging and established American printmakers, such as Dorothy Dehner and Armin Landeck. The nonhierarchical and collaborative atmosphere that Hayter promoted allowed Surrealism to flourish, and the shop became known for its opportunities—including for women, for whom printmaking had typically been regarded as too physically demanding.
This exhibition features about 50 prints created by artists who explored Surrealism at Atelier 17. It is organized to commemorate the workshop’s centennial in conjunction with the Atelier 17 Project (opens in a new tab), a nonprofit organization focused on this notable anniversary. It also highlights a Cleveland-specific connection: Salvador Dalí’s 1947 etching Saint George and the Dragon—for which the museum holds a related drawing and the original printing plate—was commissioned by the Print Club of Cleveland and made in collaboration with Hayter. Together, the works on view reveal the central role that Atelier 17, and printmaking more broadly, played in Surrealism’s international exchange.
Featured Art
Sponsors
All exhibitions at the Cleveland Museum of Art are underwritten by the CMA Fund for Exhibitions. Principal annual support is provided by Michael Frank and the late Pat Snyder, the Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation, the John and Jeanette Walton Exhibition Fund, and Margaret and Loyal Wilson. Major annual support is provided by the late Dick Blum and Harriet Warm and the Frankino-Dodero Family Fund for Exhibitions Endowment. Generous annual support is provided by two anonymous donors, Gini and Randy Barbato, Cynthia and Dale Brogan, Dr. Ben and Julia Brouhard, Brenda and Marshall Brown, Gail and Bill Calfee, the Leigh H. Carter family, Dr. William A. Chilcote Jr. and Dr. Barbara S. Kaplan, Mary and Jim Conway, Joseph and Susan Corsaro, Ron and Cheryl Davis, the Jeffery Wallace Ellis Trust in memory of Lloyd H. Ellis Jr., Leigh and Andy Fabens, Florence Kahane Goodman, Martha H. and Steven M. Hale, Janice Hammond and Edward Hemmelgarn, Linda Harper, Robin Heiser, the late Marta and the late Donald M. Jack Jr., the estate of Walter and Jean Kalberer, Robert M. Kaye, Jane and Doug Kern, the late Mrs. Nancy M. Lavelle, Eva and Rudolf Linnebach, William S. Lipscomb, Bill and Joyce Litzler, the Roy Minoff Family Fund, Lu Anne and the late Carl Morrison, Mrs. Peta and the late Dr. Roland Moskowitz, Jeffrey Mostade and Eric Nilson and Varun Shetty, Sarah Nash, Courtney and Michael Novak, Mark and Paula Nylander, Tim O’Brien and Breck Platner, Dr. Nicholas and Anne Ogan, William J. and Katherine T. O’Neill, Henry Ott-Hansen, Frank and Fran Porter, Christine Fae Powell, Peter and Julie Raskind, Michael and Cindy Resch, Marguerite and James Rigby, in memory of Dee Schafer, Betty T. and David M. Schneider, Elizabeth and Tim Sheeler, Saundra K. Stemen, Paula and Eugene Stevens, the Womens Council of the Cleveland Museum of Art, and Claudia Woods and David Osage.
The Cleveland Museum of Art is funded in part by residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.
This exhibition was supported in part by the Ohio Arts Council, which receives support from the State of Ohio and the National Endowment for the Arts.
