Dorothea Tanning American, 1910-2012

Throughout her expansive, seven-decade career, Dorothea Tanning (b. 1910 Illinois - d. 2012 New York, United States) created dreamlike worlds, embracing Surrealism and sensual transcendence. Her practice-which spanned painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, poetry, and memoir-was at first heavily representational and decidedly Surrealist: Her paintings featured sinewy figures, strong lines, and dramatic shadings. In the 1950s, Tanning began to explore more abstract modes, making use of dynamic compositions and luminous, prismatic color planes. She also produced large-scale soft sculptures and room-sized installations: Her iconic Hôtel du Pavot, Chambre 202 (1970-73), for example, features surrealistic bodies growing out of gallery walls. Tanning's work has sold for seven figures on the secondary market and belongs in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Moderna Museet, the Museo Reina Sofía, the Tate, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., among others.