Dada: Art and anti-art

Where and how Dada began

Where and how Dada began is almost as difficult to determine as Homer's birthplace, writes Hans Richter, who was associated with the movement from its early days.

Dada prepared the way for Surrealism

Here, through selections from key manifestos and other documents of the time, he records Dada's history, from its beginnings in wartime Zurich to its collapse in the Paris of the 1920s. Dada led on from Expressionism, Cubism, and Futurism, and in turn prepared the way for Surrealism.

Spirit of Dada

It was enlivened by bizarre and extravagant personalities, notably Tristan Tzara, Francis Picabia, Hans Arp, Kurt Schwitters, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, and Man Ray, whose contributions are fully discussed. The spirit of Dada reappeared in the 1960s in movements such as Pop Art, which are surveyed in the final section.