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KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948) & THEO VAN DOESBURG (1883-1931)
25
●
KLEINE DADA SOIRÉE. 1922.
11
3
/
4
x11
3
/
4
inches, 30x30 cm.
Condition A-: minor repaired tears at edges; minor restoration along unobtrusive vertical, horizontal and
diagonal folds. Paper. Matted and framed.
Late in 1922, Schwitters and van Doesburg planned a small tour around the Netherlands with a
traveling Dada show in order to introduce local artists to their work. The initial evening had been
scheduled for December 27, but Schwitters had problems with his passport and the first show wasn’t
held until January 10. In all, there were 17 separate performances in 8 different locations. The first
event was held at the Haagsche Kunstkring in the Hague. The address of the venue is included in the
poster’s upper right corner (“Haagsche K.K. Binnenhof 8”). For subsequent performances in other
locations, the poster was slightly changed; this address was removed and a small plug for van
Doesburg’s Dada magazine,
Mécano
, was added that read, “Abonnement Mécano F5 per Jaar.”
Otherwise, the two versions of the poster are identical. The poster has the event program and Dada
slogans - presented in sophisticated disorder using different hand drawn typography and font sizes.
“The poster’s discordant appearance reflects the tenor of many Dada evenings”
(moma.org/learn).
Modern Poster p. 102, Avant Garde p. 38, Berman p. 38.
[15,000/20,000]