Société Anonyme (art)
Encyclopedia
Société Anonyme, Inc. was an art organization founded in 1920 by Katherine Dreier, Man Ray
and Marcel Duchamp
. The society sponsored lectures, concerts, publications, and exhibitions of modern art, including the International Exhibition of Modern Art at the Brooklyn Museum in 1926. Between 1920 and 1940 they held 80 exhibitions showing mostly abstract art.
Man Ray
picked the name "Société Anonyme
", having seen it in French magazines, but knowing little French, assumed it referred to some anonymous society. It actually means "Corporation", but Duchamp thought it a fine name and later while the legal paper work was being written up the "Inc." was added, making its English translation, with its delightful dadaistic redundance, "Corporation, Inc.".
The Société's headquarters in New Jersey closed in 1928, but Dreier continued to organize events, and accumulate artwork to add to the Société Anonyme's collection. Dreier donated the collection to the Yale University Art Gallery
in 1941.
On April 30, 1950, the 30th anniversary of the Société Anonyme's first exhibition, Dreier and Duchamp hosted a dinner at the New Haven Lawn Club, where they formally dissolved the organization.
Man Ray
Man Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
and Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
. The society sponsored lectures, concerts, publications, and exhibitions of modern art, including the International Exhibition of Modern Art at the Brooklyn Museum in 1926. Between 1920 and 1940 they held 80 exhibitions showing mostly abstract art.
Man Ray
Man Ray
Man Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
picked the name "Société Anonyme
S.A. (corporation)
S.A. designates a particular type of corporation in various countries, mostly those employing the civil law. It originated in Spain during the 16th century. Depending on language, the abbreviation stands for various phrases meaning anonymous society, anonymous company, anonymous partnership, or...
", having seen it in French magazines, but knowing little French, assumed it referred to some anonymous society. It actually means "Corporation", but Duchamp thought it a fine name and later while the legal paper work was being written up the "Inc." was added, making its English translation, with its delightful dadaistic redundance, "Corporation, Inc.".
The Société's headquarters in New Jersey closed in 1928, but Dreier continued to organize events, and accumulate artwork to add to the Société Anonyme's collection. Dreier donated the collection to the Yale University Art Gallery
Yale University Art Gallery
The Yale University Art Gallery houses a significant and encyclopedic collection of art in several buildings on the campus of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Although it embraces all cultures and periods, the Gallery possesses especially renowned collections of early Italian painting,...
in 1941.
On April 30, 1950, the 30th anniversary of the Société Anonyme's first exhibition, Dreier and Duchamp hosted a dinner at the New Haven Lawn Club, where they formally dissolved the organization.
External links
- Yale University website on Société Anonyme (Disable Firefox Adblock to view the entire site.)
- Katherine S. Dreier Papers/Société Anonyme Archive at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University
- In Good Company Hammer Museum exhibition review by Karen Dunbar in X-TRA : Contemporary Art Quarterly
- Little-known Star Artists Hammer Museum exhibition review by Naomi Hume in X-TRA : Contemporary Art Quarterly