Man Ray

Cordier & Ekstrom, New York
Mr & Mrs Frank H. Porter, Cleveland (acquired from the above in November 1965)
Mr & Mrs Frank H. Porter Trust Estate (sale: Christie's, New York, 4th November 2004, lot 337)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Man Ray, 1966-67, no. 176
Cleveland, The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Spirit of Surrealism, 1980, no. 4, illustrated in the catalogue
Washington, D.C., National Museum of American Art; Los Angeles, The Museum of Contemporary Art; Houston, The Menil Collection & Philadelphia, Museum of Art, Perpetual Motif. The Art of Man Ray, 1988-90

Arturo Schwarz, Man Ray. The Rigour of Imagination, London, 1977, no. 253, illustrated p. 146
Jean-Hubert Martin, Rosalind Krauss & Brigitte Hermann, Man Ray. Objets de mon affection. Sculptures et objects, catalogue raisonné, Paris, 1983, no. 152, illustrated p. 121

Apart from a few very light surface scratches to the torso and two small scratches to the face, the mannequin is in excellent condition. The box has some light scattered surface scratches mostly to the back & right side to the lid. This work is in very good condition. Colours: The wood tone is slightly warmer in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

'Man Ray: "Objects of My Affection"'

In the years when Man Ray was working as a painter in New York, he discovered the power of ordinary objects to convey ideas. His inspiration might have come from Duchamp's readymades, which he saw in various exhibitions or in the artist's studio, but almost immediately he sought to differentiate his approach from those of his friend: 'My attitude toward the object is different from Duchamp's for whom retitling an object sufficed. I need more than one factor, at least two. Two factors that are not related in any way. The creative act for me rests in the coupling of these two different factors in order to produce something new, which might be called a plastic poem' (quoted in Arturo Schwarz, Man Ray: The Rigour of Imagination, New York, 1977, p. 158). He further explained the significance of the titles he selected: 'Whenever I made objects, never would I make anything with the idea that it should be pretty, decorative, or attractive or fascinating. No, I would pick up something absolutely meaningless, add a little something or detract something from it and transform it a little bit, so as to get almost a poetic image rendered in three dimensions. And the title would be as important as the object itself, as a clue to it' (A. Schwarz, 'Interview with Man Ray', in New York Dada: Duchamp, Man Ray, Picabia, Munich, 1973, p. 100).

Long after Man Ray moved to Paris and established an international reputation as a photographer and a painter, he continued to make these so-called 'poetic objects', many assembled from everyday items. Over time, they would fill his entire living space, so much so that when people came over to visit, they often were unable to distinguish between an object he made and something that was simply discarded, creating a confusion that delighted him. Eventually, Man Ray began to classify all of these objects under the intentionally emotive title Objects of My Affection.

In the 1920s and 30s, objects by Man Ray appeared in various Surrealist exhibitions and journals. Cadeau of 1921, which consisted of a flat iron with tacks glued to its surface, seemed to magically express the essence of Surrealism, before the word was even used to describe works of art. As early as 1925, Breton suggested that 'objects seen in dreams should be manufactured' (A. Breton, 'Introduction au discours sur le peu de réalité (1925)', quoted in A. Schwarz, op. cit., p. 131). In 1936, five objects by Man Ray were included in a celebrated exhibition of Surrealist Objects at the Galerie Charles Ratton in Paris, including works by Arp, Bellmer, Breton, Calder, Dalí, Duchamp, Ernst, Giacometti, Magritte, Miró, Picasso and Tanguy.

While living in Hollywood in the 1940s, Man Ray decided to gather and publish a selection of objects. Although the book was never published, his notes summarise his approach: 'I am tired of being surrounded by objects I can smile at, be indulgent with - objects which amuse me and arouse in me a sense of tolerance and of superiority. I want objects that disturb, mystify, and intimidate me, whose function I cannot divine, objects which I hope will never function for my comfort or my understanding' (from an album of notes formerly in the collection of Naomi Savage, Man Ray's niece; now at the Getty Museum, Los Angeles).

In 1945, the New York dealer Julien Levy, who was the first to introduce Surrealism to an American audience, gave Man Ray a show called Objects of My Affection, containing 10 objects and 26 paintings from 1915 to 1945. In his introduction to the catalogue, Man Ray wrote: 'It has never been my object to record my dreams - just the determination to realize them. To this end I never refer to them as dreams. Very convenient too, when you consider that the better part of my conceptions are conceived during the waking hours.' He concluded his statement with a paragraph that outlines his approach to making all works of art. 'In whatever form it is finally presented: by a drawing, by a painting, by a photograph or by the object itself in its original material and dimensions, it is designed to amuse, bewilder, annoy or to inspire reflection, but not to arouse admiration for any technical excellence usually sought for in works of art. The streets are full of admirable craftsman, but so few practical dreamers' (in Man Ray (exhibition catalogue), Julien Levy Gallery, New York, 1945).

Francis M. Naumann

Lot 386
Man Ray, L'Homme nouveau, 1964

Man Ray's L'Homme nouveau consists of a wooden mannequin seated on a shelf in a wooden box, somewhat too small to fit the figure comfortably.  It forms the male equivalent to a work the artist made four years earlier called Vièrge Apprivoisée ("Domesticated Virgin"), which consists of a female mannequin in a similar box, but in this particular case she is shackled to the interior by a small chain. The theme of submission recurs throughout Man Ray's work, relating to his lifelong interest in the writings of the Marquis de Sade, shared by his fellow Surrealists.

Exactly what Man Ray intended these figures to represent is unknown, although it is tempting to imagine that he depicted womankind as physically and emotionally enslaved, while in the present work, by contrast, man is forced to accept the confines of a claustrophobic space, a plight that he might have envisioned as equally painful or unjust. This interpretation becomes all the more poignant when we realize that the artist's first name is "man" , thereby suggesting a kind of self-portrait. It is possible that Man Ray sees himself as boxed or pigeonholed into being consistently identified as a photographer, while critics often ignored his works in other media, a dilemma the artist took on as a lifelong struggle.

Man Ray introduces another element to L'Homme nouveau: the new "man" holds a wooden egg, which can be read as a symbol of both fertility and the awakening of the young mind. However, this symbol contains an inherent conceit since man, and indeed all mammals, do not require the egg to reproduce.

Francis M. Naumann