MAN RAY (1890–1976)

Man Ray’s Demain is a clever “clin d'oeil,” a knowing wink at art history and at certain key artistic tendencies of the day. The exaggerated silhouette achieved through his intricately constructed multiple exposure technique evokes Cycladic fertility symbols. It also calls to mind the stylized nudes of Amedeo Modigliani that make reference to these and other ancient sculptural interpretations of the female body. The raised arms echo certain of Modigliani's recumbent nudes, which have a powerful precursor in Goya's notorious The Nude Maja of 1797-1800. The sharply angled upturned arms of Man Ray's nude, elbows pointing vertically, assertively displaying her body, match those of the central figure in Pablo Picasso's Les demoiselles d'Avignon of 1907, the pivotal painting that dramatically initiated Cubism. The original glass negative for this frontal pose is in the collection of the Musée national d’art moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou (ref. AM 1995-201 [277]).