Hans Arp

Born in Strasbourg in 1886, Hans (Jean) Arp became a central figure not only of the Dada movement, in which he played a significant role at its inception in Zurich, but also of the entire European avant-garde of the 20th century. Over six decades, Arp created a diverse body of work that includes German and French poems and essays, as well as sculptures, reliefs, collages, paintings, etchings, drawings, and textile designs. In his biography, written after years of research, Rudolf Suter presents all phases of Arp's life and work in detail. He traces Arp's continuously evolving intellectual and artistic journey from youthful surrealism through Dadaism to his later works, which are heavily influenced by Christian themes, while connecting them to biographical milestones and the context of that time. This is a particular achievement of Suter's.