Of This Men Shall Know Nothing
Of This Men Shall Know Nothing (German: Von diesem wissen Männer nichts) is oil on canvas painting by a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet Max Ernst. The painting was completed in 1923 in Paris, France. It is created in a Surrealism style by use of symbolic painting genre during First French period. The painting measures 81 by 64 centimeters and is now housed at Tate Liverpool.[1]
| Von diesem wissen Männer nichts | |
|---|---|
| English: Of This Men Shall Know Nothing | |
| Artist | Max Ernst |
| Year | 1923 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 81 cm × 64 cm (32 in × 25 in) |
| Location | Tate Gallery, London |
Description
The painting shares several features with Silberer's diagram: its landscape setting and low horizon; the gradation of the sky from light at the bottom to dark at the top; and the inclusion of the Sun and the Moon. Ernst replaced the cube of Primal Matter with a pile of entrails.[2] Elsewhere Ernst also employed alchemical motifs, such as in this painting of the sexual conjunction of Sun and Moon.[3]
References
- Tate. "Max Ernst: Men Shall Know Nothing of This, 1923 – Display at Tate Liverpool". Tate. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
- Alchemy in contemporary art by Urszula Szulakowska, ISBN 0-7546-6736-7
- Max Ernst and alchemy: a magician in search of a myth, by M. E. Warlick, ISBN 0-2927-9136-4