Photography by Edward C. Robison III
The Truth About Comets
Two brightly dressed mermaids appear unalarmed despite their displacement in this strange, snowy landscape. A staircase seems to lead to another world before transforming into barren tree branches. Through travel to Europe and involvement with an international circle of artists in the US, Dorothea Tanning engaged closely with Surrealism. The movement focused on dreams and the unconscious to rethink reality.
ArtistDorothea Tanning(1910-2012)
Date1945
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions29 5/8 x 29 5/8 x 4 in.
Signedl.r., in black paint: Dorothea Tanning / '45
Credit LineCrystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2014.24
ClassificationPainting
Provenance(Julien Levy Gallery, New York, NY), 1948; purchased by Edward James [1907-1984], January 1948; by bequest to Edward James Foundation, West Dean, Sussex, England, 1984; (Christie’s, New York, NY), Modern Paintings and Drawings from The Edward James Collection, October 6, 1988; purchased by (Gallery of Surrealism, New York, NY), 1988; purchased by Svetlana Lucas, New York, NY, 2007; (Gallery of Surrealism, New York, NY); purchased by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, AR, 2014
On ViewYes
This artwork's face covers about 120× the area of a tennis ball.Drawn to the same scale.