Claude Cahun

(French, 1894–1954)

Claude Cahun was a Surrealist photographer whose work explored gender identity and the subconscious mind. The artist’s self-portrait from 1928 epitomizes her attitude and style, as she stares defiantly at the camera in an outfit that looks neither conventionally masculine nor feminine. “Under this mask, another mask,” the artist famously said. “I will never be finished removing all these faces.” Born Lucy Schwob in Nantes, France on October 25, 1894 to a prominent Jewish family, she would later attend the University of Paris, Sorbonne. Her first recorded self-portraits are dated as early as 1912, when the artist was about 18. In the early 1920s, she would change her name to the gender neutral Claude Cahun, which would be the third and last time the artist changed her name. Along with step-sister and lover Marcel Moor, she moved to Paris and fell into the milieu of the Surrealist art scene. The artist went on to collaborate with Man Ray, as well as founding the left-wing group Contre Attaque alongside André Breton and Georges Bataille. In the late 1930s, Moore and Cahun moved to Jersey, an island off the coast of Normandy, where they, disguised as non-Jews, they produced and distributed anti-Nazi propaganda. After being caught, imprisoned, and sentenced to death, they successfully escaped such a fate when Jersey was liberated by allies in 1945. Cahun is considered to be a ground-breaking artist who fully embraced her gender fluidity long before the term came into use. Tragically, she never fully recovered from her maltreatment in prison and passed away on December 8, 1954 in Jersey, United Kingdom. Her work left a huge impression on photography and directly influenced contemporary photographers Cindy Sherman, Gillian Wearing, and Nan Goldin. Today, her works are held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, among others.

Claude Cahun News

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9 Powerful Couples Who Moved Beyond the Binary of Artist and Muse

Freed From the Shackles of Copyright, These Dazzling Artworks From 1925 Are Finally in the Public Domain

by Brian Boucher

Freed From the Shackles of Copyright, These Dazzling Artworks From 1925 Are Finally in the Public Domain

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Claude Cahun Artworks

Claude Cahun (109 results)

Self Portrait, ca. 1925–printed: 1998

Claude Cahun

Self Portrait, ca. 1925–printed: 1998

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Aveux non Avenus (bk w/10 works, 4to)

Claude Cahun

Aveux non Avenus (bk w/10 works, 4to)

Sale Date: April 10, 2024

Auction Closed

Suzanne Malherbe, dite Marcel Moore, les..., 1940

Claude Cahun

Suzanne Malherbe, dite Marcel Moore, les..., 1940

Sale Date: November 9, 2023

Auction Closed

Sans titre [crâne et verre], 1936

Claude Cahun

Sans titre [crâne et verre], 1936

Sale Date: November 9, 2023

Auction Closed

Entre nous, 1926–1934

Claude Cahun

Entre nous, 1926–1934

Sale Date: November 9, 2023

Auction Closed

Claude Cahun et Roger Roussot dans..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Claude Cahun et Roger Roussot dans..., 1929

Sale Date: November 10, 2022

Auction Closed

Prends un petit bâton pointu [Poupée]...., 1936

Claude Cahun

Prends un petit bâton pointu [Poupée]...., 1936

Sale Date: November 10, 2022

Auction Closed

Robert Desnos, 1930., 1930

Claude Cahun

Robert Desnos, 1930., 1930

Sale Date: November 10, 2022

Auction Closed

Henri Michaux, 1937., 1937

Claude Cahun

Henri Michaux, 1937., 1937

Sale Date: November 10, 2022

Auction Closed

Aveux Non Avenus., 1930

Claude Cahun

Aveux Non Avenus., 1930

Sale Date: June 2, 2022

Auction Closed

LE CŒUR DE PIC. TRENTE-DEUX POÈMES POUR LES..., 1937

After Claude Cahun

LE CŒUR DE PIC. TRENTE-DEUX POÈMES POUR LES..., 1937

Sale Date: October 7, 2021

Auction Closed

Autoportrait aux orchidées, 1939

Claude Cahun

Autoportrait aux orchidées, 1939

Sale Date: June 24, 2021

Auction Closed

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Sale Date: June 24, 2021

Auction Closed

Autoportrait devant les affiches de Geo , 1911–1912

Claude Cahun

Autoportrait devant les affiches de Geo , 1911–1912

Sale Date: June 24, 2021

Auction Closed

Le père, 1932

Claude Cahun

Le père, 1932

Sale Date: May 25, 2021

Auction Closed

Autoportrait (variante I’m in training...), 1927

Claude Cahun

Autoportrait (variante I’m in training...), 1927

Sale Date: May 25, 2021

Auction Closed

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Sale Date: July 3, 2020

Auction Closed

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Sale Date: July 3, 2020

Auction Closed

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Sale Date: July 3, 2020

Auction Closed

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Claude Cahun

Théâtre de recherches dramatiques, mai-juin..., 1929

Sale Date: July 3, 2020

Auction Closed

'LA CHAMBRE DU CHAT', 1940

Claude Cahun

'LA CHAMBRE DU CHAT', 1940

Sale Date: June 27, 2019

Auction Closed

I. CHAT À LA CLOCHE; II. CHAT À LA VASQUE, 1925–1930

Claude Cahun

I. CHAT À LA CLOCHE; II. CHAT À LA VASQUE, 1925–1930

Sale Date: November 9, 2018

Auction Closed

SELFPORTRAIT WITH CAT, 1927

Claude Cahun

SELFPORTRAIT WITH CAT, 1927

Sale Date: November 9, 2018

Auction Closed

Objet sous globe de verre, 1936

Claude Cahun

Objet sous globe de verre, 1936

Sale Date: June 15, 2018

Auction Closed

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