Artists You Should Know: Tristan Tzara

When the article on Dada was published, a polite and friendly gentleman wrote to inquire where the poet Tristan Tzara's name had gotten to. I had to agree that it was conspicuously absent (as so many names are!) and rectify matters by writing a profile. Tristan was a poet, not a visual artist. His impact on Dada, though, was enormous. He was also a pioneer of the Performance Art movement. A read-through of Tristan's early work brings a sort of wry grin to the face; he sounds so angry, grim, anarchistic and despairing of any Human Good. (In other words, so young.) It was interesting to learn that, later in life, he dialed down the intensity a bit and became more lyrical with his words (which lent themselves nicely to Surrealism). In fact, he actually became more willing to associate with the teeming masses, becoming a Communist and participating in the French Resistance during WWII. (We either calm down and join in, or exit this life, no?) Anyway, I was happy to point out Tristan's contributions to the art world, and you, Kind Sir (you know who you are), are to be thanked.