Alice Rahon & Gerrie Gutmann from In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists at LACMA

I went to the LACMA show In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States.  Today I am sharing some images of art that moved me.  There were many other pieces in the show I intend to share, but today my focus will be on a handful of pieces by Alice Rahon and Gerrie Gutmann. 

When I go to an art exhibit, I wander through the show looking at the art and trying to absorb the impact it has in that present moment.  If they allow photographs, I snap a pic of the art and the placard next to it, but I don't usually spend a lot of time reading when I'm at the exhibit.  When I'm there, I want to be immersed in the art itself and less so the details of the artists themselves.  Obviously there are some artists I know more about when I go into a show than others, but I like to try to let the art speak for itself.  

However, when I come home and look through my images, I look at the information on the corresponding placards.  Sometimes I find I have more information on some artists then others.  That is the case with these two artists.

Alice Rahon, Balada para Frida Kahlo (Ballad for Frida Kahlo), 1956-66

Alice Rahon was born in France, 1904-1987, and was active in Mexico and in the United States.  Frida Kahlo and Alice Rahon met in 1939 in Paris and became friends.  Balada para Frida Kahlo is in homage to Frida Kahlo from Alice Rahon. To Frida Kahlo, the color cobalt blue meant "electricity, purity, and love." 

Alice Rahon, Orion Ballet: Juglar (Orion Ballet: Juggler), 1946

Concerned with the thought of the annihilation of the human race after World War II, Alice Rahon designed wire marionette characters.  These characters, such as the Juggler and the Androgyne, represent a cosmic ballet linked to the constellation Orion. Displayed in clear plastic cases scattered throughout the exhibit, her pieces seemed so full of movement to me. 

Alice Rahon, Orion Ballet: L'Androgyne (Orion Ballet: The Androgyne), 1946

All that I know of Gerrie Gutmann, 1921-1969, was that she was born in the United States.  I love her delicate line art and I am intrigued with the details in her art.  Her Self-Portrait is colored pencil on paper and her Torso Interior is colored crayon on board.

Gerrie Gutmann, Self-Portrait, 1946

Gerrie Gutmann, Torso Interior, 1946

I am linking this post with Inspire Me Monday and Magical Monday.