Renowned for her wit and humour, Meret Oppenheim produced her best-known work Object (1936), a furry cup and saucer, at the age of just 23, attracting attention from the likes of Marcel Duchamp and Max Ernst. Taking its name from the artist’s final project, for which Oppenheim outlined an exhibition of her life’s works across a series of 12 drawings, this show at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (30 October–4 March 2023) brings together 120 works from across her five decade career. Working across photography, collage, painting and sculpture, her works constantly challenged society’s rigid definitions of gender, while adding new dimensions to Surrealism. Highlights of the show include a series of early sketches and paintings such as Stone Woman (1938) as well as works from a particularly productive period when Oppenheim lived in Bern, including her large-scale sculptural work Octavia (1969). Meanwhile, vast paintings such as New Stars (1977–82) reveal Oppenheim’s lifelong dedication to experimenting with form. Find out more from MoMA’s website.
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New Stars (Neue Sterne) (1977–82), Meret Oppenheim. Kunstmuseum Bern
X-Ray of M.O.’s Skull (Röntgenaufnahme des Schädels M.O.) (1964/81), Meret Oppenheim. Kunstmuseum Bern
Stone Woman (Steinfrau) (1938), Meret Oppenheim. Private Collection
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