by Jon Lackman | 31 August 2006 | Books, Modern
Earlier this month, the Chronicle of Higher Education surveyed a crop of (relatively) recent Dada books: the blockbuster exhibition catalogue, Amelia Jones’ Irrational Modernism: A Neurasthenic History of New York Dada, Tom Sandqvist’s Dada East: The Romanians of Cabaret Voltaire, and The DADA Reader: A Critical Anthology, edited by Dawn Ades. “It is ironic that the story of Dada’s calculated outrage and irreverence has since congealed into one of the familiar narratives of the 20th century … So why do we keep returning to Dada — rehearsing its traditional narrative or crafting new ones? Ms. Ades says that particular moment of war, economic ruin, and shattered idealism was a crucible of sorts for artists. ‘Dada,’ she says, ‘gives us a look at the way artists who were in a crisis addressed their role.’”
