It was the eerie and otherworldly Arizona desert that American photographer Lee Miller chose as the setting for her 1946 double portrait of surrealist artist Max Ernst and his wife, Dorothea Tanning.
Miller’s own early background in surrealism was always reflected in her work, and her sleight of hand in this tongue-in-cheek rendering of the doll-like Tanning and the giant (in his own mind?) Ernst is a typical example of her idiosyncratic approach.
Taken during a visit to America with her English husband, artist Roland Penrose, this photograph is among Miller’s late work. After her photo essays on the horrors of Dachau and the aftermath of the Second World War in dangerous and remote locations in eastern Europe, photography held less appeal for Miller, and she turned down most assignments that were offered. One of the few subjects that did interest her in this period, and for which she would usually accept a commission, were portraits of fellow artists.
Maureen Smith is the facilities and program manager of the University of Toronto Art Centre. The Legendary Lee Miller was on exhibit until June 30, 2000.
Recent Posts
We Need a Green New Deal for Canada
Linking climate action to job creation, living wages and equality reframes the debate as a win-win – though tough political choices remain
The Madam Who Shot the Mountie
How a brothel-keeper in 1880s Edmonton crossed the law – and won
Doing the Devil’s Work
The local bishop called her a heretic. The Criminal Code deemed her work illegal. But Dr. Elizabeth Bagshaw was more concerned with helping women at Canada’s first birth control centre
