Max Ernst
German painter/sculptor
Born on: April 2, 1891Died on: April 1, 1976
Aged: 84 years 365 days (1019 months)
Nationality: German-American-French
Birth Sign: Aries
Max Ernst was a German-born painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a pioneer of the Dada movement and surrealism in Europe.
He had no formal artistic training, but his experimental attitude toward the making of art resulted in his invention of frottage—a technique that uses pencil rubbings of textured objects and relief surfaces to create images—and grattage, an analogous technique in which paint is scraped across canvas to reveal the imprints of the objects placed beneath.
Ernst is noted for his unconventional drawing methods as well as for creating novels and pamphlets using the method of collages.
He served as a soldier for four years during World War I, which left him shocked and critical of the modern world.
During World War II he was designated an "undesirable foreigner" while living in France.
