This 2013 film by Canadian artist Marcel Dzama is a fictionalized account of the ill-fated affair between Dada artist Marcel Duchamp and Brazilian sculptor Maria Martins. Rife with art historical references to the work of Duchamp, Francisco Goya, Francis Picabia and Joseph Beuys, among others, the 30-minute production is an exciting and often bizarre exploration of the surreal.
Dzama conceived of Une Danse des Bouffons as an homage to horror filmmaker David Cronenberg, and instills it with art historical references to the work of Duchamp, Francisco Goya, Francis Picabia and Joseph Beuys, among others. The result is a dark, bizarre world of fantasy, desire, fear and trauma inspired by horror films, Surrealism, experimental art, and theater and costume design of the early 20th century.
This exhibition contains imagery, including nudity and violence, that may not be appropriate for all viewers.
About the Artist
Marcel Dzama was born in Winnipeg, the son of a baker and a nurse. A dyslexic youngster for whom reading was a struggle, he took refuge in near-constant drawing. As an art student at the University of Manitoba, Dzama co-founded The Royal Arts Lodge, “a collective for mildly dysfunctional, highly imaginative people who liked to draw.” Responding to influences ranging
from comic books to Inuit art and from William Blake to Marcel Duchamp, he began experimenting with sculpture, ceramics, painting, film, dioramas and puppets.
Dzama, now 41, lives and works in Brooklyn. He is represented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the National Gallery of Canada, the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Guggenheim Museum, and the Tate, among others. His work is avidly collected by private individuals as well, including Brad Pitt, Gus Van Sant, Jim Carrey and Nicholas Cage.
Dzama has designed album covers for They Might Be Giants and Beck and provided art direction for The Suburbs, a short film by Canadian indie band Arcade Fire.