dadaism

Sabrina Kureshy
European History
Pugliese E
Response #7

Dadaism
Dadaism captured the disheartened and dissatisfied sentiments of those artists who were a part of the movement, post-WWI. Speak to any Dadaist during that time, and he or she would have be offended if the movement referred to as an artistic one. It was certainly not. It was anti-art. It was a cultural movement that reflected an attitude, a view of the world, a certain understanding (or rather lack there of). There lies an interesting connection between the concept of anti-art and the effects of WWI on people.
If art was supposed to have a meaning, dada was meant to be meaningless; if art was intended to appeal to the senses, dada was meant to offend. How strange, yet how understandable. It was a depressing time for people around the world, and thus Dadaism developed, attracting people who look at the world in a very nihilistic way.
Dadaists looked cynically upon the human potential. They didn’t understand how men could become involved in such brutal actions on the battlefield. Consequently, Dadaism was a nonsensical and restriction-lacking outlet for those who couldn’t believe that order could give way to the horrid events that took place during WWI.
Having written about the Romantic Movement and how it was reactionary to European industrialization, political tensions etc., I think its interesting that throughout history, movements like Romanticism and Dadaism have formed because of events that upset the calmness and understanding amongst certain people. There is clearly a link between historical events and actions and those who chose to react in ways other than voicing dissenting opinions. What are we supposed to make of this? I think we are supposed to understand that as humans, many of us feel the need to express our opinions in very different ways. Historically, cultural and artistic expression (whether its Romanticism, Classicism, Dadaism, Realism, Surrealism, etc.) has been a key medium in which people relieve their unhappiness. We can’t always change the world around us, but perhaps it is reactionary movements like these, that have allowed us to, in our own mind, make the world a better place.