Dorothea Tanning
A fearless explorer of dream logic and feminine desire, she pushed far beyond the boundaries of Surrealism into a wild, visionary art of her own making.
1910–2012 (age 102)·American painter, printmaker, sculptor, writer, and poet·Birthday: August 25·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Dorothea Tanning arrived in New York City in the 1930s, a young artist from Illinois drawn to the unsettling power of Surrealism. An early masterpiece, 'Birthday,' announced her arrival—a self-portrait of hypnotic confidence, her dress crawling with strange, organic forms. While she married the movement's king, Max Ernst, Tanning was never a follower. She used Surrealist techniques as a starting point to probe the subconscious, particularly the complexities of female experience, with a psychological sharpness that set her apart. In the 1950s, she broke free entirely, abandoning figurative painting for abstract, textural canvases filled with swirling, violent energy. Her relentless innovation continued into sculpture, creating soft, fabric forms that were both inviting and disquieting, and later into poetry and novels. Tanning's seven-decade career was a continuous act of self-reinvention, making her one of the most original and under-recognized American artists of the 20th century.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Dorothea was born in 1910, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Dorothea Was Born
The biggest hits of 1910
Dorothea's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1910Born
Halley's Comet makes its closest approach
President: William Howard Taft
1915Started school
The Lusitania is sunk by a German U-boat
President: Woodrow Wilson
1923Became a teenager
The Great Kanto earthquake devastates Tokyo
President: Calvin Coolidge"Yes! We Have No Bananas" — Billy Jones
1926Could drive
Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket
President: Calvin Coolidge"Baby Face" — Jan Garber
1928Could vote
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin; Mickey Mouse debuts
President: Calvin Coolidge"Ol' Man River" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: Wings
1931Turned 21
The Empire State Building opens as the world's tallest
Gas: $0.17/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Minnie the Moocher" — Cab CallowayBest Picture: Cimarron
1940Turned 30
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1950Turned 40
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1960Turned 50
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1970Turned 60
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1980Turned 70
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 80
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2012Died at 102
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
Key Achievements
- Created a vast and varied body of work spanning painting, sculpture, printmaking, poetry, and fiction over a career lasting more than seven decades.
- Her iconic self-portrait 'Birthday' (1942) is considered a landmark work of 20th-century American Surrealism.
- Pioneered a radical shift in her style in the 1950s, moving into abstract, heavily impastoed paintings that conveyed raw, primal energy.
- Created a famous series of 'soft sculpture' installations in the 1970s, using fabric to craft surreal, anthropomorphic forms.
- Published two volumes of memoirs, a collection of poems, and a novel, demonstrating her literary talent.
Did You Know?
She designed the costumes and sets for several George Balanchine ballets in the 1940s.
She lived to be 101 years old, remaining creatively active into her late 90s.
Her husband, artist Max Ernst, left his first wife for Tanning after seeing her painting 'Birthday.'
She had a strong, lifelong aversion to being labeled solely as a 'woman artist' or a 'Surrealist.'
A major retrospective of her work at the Tate Modern in 2019 significantly revived critical interest in her career.
“"I wanted to lead the eye into spaces that hid, revealed, transformed all at once and where there would be some never-before-seen image."”
