Sophie Taeuber, Emmy Hennings e o papel das mulheres na vanguarda dadaísta

Abstract

The following research has its main thrust the analysis of the women’s participation in the Dadaist movement, with regard to their productions on the figure of women in society, taking into account the aspects of race, class and sexuality, and their claims regarding superstructural changes in society. Despite being present in the movement, women aligned with Dadaism had their role reduced, or completely omitted, when exposed to the criticism of the artistic productions, or based on the memories offered by their male colleagues in their autobiographical productions. Furthermore, the research also aims to debate the obstacles faced by these women, which sustained the marginalization of their work in academic circles. Even though the work presents examples of productions by various Dada artists, two women were chosen to deepen the debate on the topic, namely Emmy Hennings and Sophie Taeuber. The choice of these women, in particular, was a result of the emphasis of the study that take place in Switzerland, a place where both are producing artistically in the Dadaist movement, and the occasion of the two artists dedicating themselves to arts understood as supposedly minor, in the period studied, both by critic and their peers fellow artists: acting and dancing, respectively. The research aims, therefore, and equally, to demonstrate the importance of these artistic performances for promoting the movement on the international scene, in contrast to the secondary status as artistic production. To prepare the debate presented, the artists’ works, made available remotely by museums located in Europe and USA, were used, as well as the artists’ own literary texts, available in books published for the general public. The sources prepared by the artists were analyzed based on the historiographical debate, wich took into account, mainly, academic productions into the areas of History of Art, Cultural and Social History, History of Women History of Intellectuality, in dialogue with the Theory of Art and Aesthetic Philosophy.