Hans BELLMER agrees to exhibit his “Doll” with André Breton.  

Hans BELLMER (1902.1975)

Autograph letter signed “Hans et Unica” to André Breton.

Three pages in-4°. Paris. August 6, 1959.

“There can be no question of exhibiting a production of the Doll under the category “Active Surrealists””

Very beautiful letter from Bellmer not wishing to associate evoking his Doll with the surrealist group during the EROS exhibition organized by Breton.

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“Dear friend, we thank you for your letter, as well as for the invitation! For at least a month, I have been working on the details of the “Doll” and Unica is trying to make large “impressive” formats, as José Pierre had recommended to him during his visit to us. By the same letter I will tell Schröder-Sonnenstern [the German artist Friedrich Schröder-Sonnenstern] to prepare a shipment of 4 paintings to the Daniel Cordier gallery and to send me back the photos that I had returned to him for identification. At the end of September, you will have everything you need (for the moment the photographers are on vacation). As for R. Oelze, I attach to this note a letter to the Rudolf Springer gallery which takes care of him, a little, according to my insistence. If you wanted to add a motet to the invitation, that would be all there is to do (…). After having superficially browsed – during José Pierre's visit to us – the list of exhibitors, I informed him by letter that there could be no question of exhibiting a staging of the Doll under the “Surrealists” category. assets ". Because: 1) The Doll (or: the Dolls) was made between 1933 and 1937; and nothing has been added since. It therefore belongs to the past . 2) In view of my disagreement with the "group" since the "expulsion" of the very large-scale surrealist painters: Matta, Brauner and, then even, Max Ernst, it goes without saying that I will not appear in the category of " assets ". Can I ask you to inform José Pierre about this? I would be very happy to do so, because his response letter was so full of arguments that I wouldn't know where to take the time to respond to it. Daniel Cordier came to see me before leaving on vacation . He was very fond, immediately offering to buy twenty drawings at a very reasonable price, and to do an exhibition of me. Being vaguely obliged to a Chicago merchant, I asked him to postpone the market a little. In any case, he is delighted with my two staging projects and he is willing to bear the costs. As for the summer in Paris, we endured with a lot of courage what we call "the inevitable" these terrible heat waves which caused the candles in our chandeliers to melt. The advantage is that glue and paints, applied to the details, dry more quickly. Unica and I ask you to convey to Élisa all our regards. Affectionately to you. Hans and Unica. »

The German artist Friedrich Schröder-Sonnenstern was exhibited in 1955 by the Springer gallery, then by Jean Dubuffet, in 1959, in the Art brut exhibition, a few months before his participation in the EROS exhibition organized by Breton at Daniel Cordier .