The largely unknown story of how the Dada movement explored and was inspired by art from Africa, Asia, and Oceania.

At its height, the Dada movement not only upended European art, it also brought that tradition into unprecedented dialogue with non-European forms of expression. This book offers the first extended analysis of Dada’s exploration of non-Western art and culture. Richly illustrated essays present close analyses of artifacts from Africa, Asia, and Oceania in the context of Dada and through an ethnological lens. Contributors also investigate the ways in which the influence of Dada can be seen in postcolonial discourse and in the context of cultural transfer.

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Featuring works by Jean Arp, Hugo Ball, George Grosz, Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Höch, Man Ray, Sophie Taeuber-Arp, Tristan Tzara, and many other artists, this is a major work that will enable a broad rethinking of Dada’s aims and achievements.

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With essays by Johannes Beltz, Jody Blake, Peter Bolz, Ralf Burmeister, Uwe Fleckner, Nanina Guyer, Christian Kaufmann, Walburga Krupp, Axel Langer, Alexis Malefakis, François Mottas, Michaela Oberhofer, Valentine Plisinier, Kathryn Smith, Hélène Thiérard, Esther Tisa Francini, Khanh Trinh, Mona de Weerdt, Michael White, and Roger Van Wyk.