André-Aimé-René Masson (January 4, 1896 - October 28, 1987) was a French artist. January 4 is the 4th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1896 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The French Republic or France (French: République française or France) is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in western Europe, and which is further made up of a collection of overseas islands and territories located in other continents. ... An artist is someone who employs creative talent to produce works of art. ...

Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Thérain in France but was brought up in Belgium. He studied art in Brussels and Paris. He fought for France in World War I and was seriously injured. The Kingdom of Belgium (Dutch: Koninkrijk België, French: Royaume de Belgique, German: Königreich Belgien) is a country in Western Europe, bordered by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, France, and the North Sea. ... Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels ( Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the de facto capital of the European Union, as two of its three main institutions have their headquarters... The Eiffel Tower has become the symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ...

Masson's early works display an interest in cubism. He later became associated with surrealism. He was one of the most enthusiastic employers of automatic drawing, making a number of automatic works in pen and ink. From around 1926 he experimented by throwing sand and glue onto canvas and making oil paintings based around the shapes so-formed. By the end of the 1920s, however, he was finding automatism rather restricting - he left the surrealist movement and turned instead to a more structured style, often producing works with a violent or erotic theme, and making a number of paintings in reaction to the Spanish Civil War (he associated once more with the surrealists at the end of the 1930s). ... Surrealism is an artistic movement and an aesthetic philosophy that aims for the liberation of the mind by emphasizing the critical and imaginative powers of the subconscious. ... Automatic drawing (distinguished from drawn expression of mediums) was developed by the surrealists, as a means of expressing the subconscious. ... 1926 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s - 1920s - 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 Referred to as the Roaring 20s. ... Alternative meaning: Spanish Civil War, 1820-1823 A republican soldier seeks cover on the Plaza de Toros in Teruel, east of Madrid. ... Events and trends Technology Jet engine invented Science Nuclear fission discovered by Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner and Fritz Strassmann Pluto, the ninth planet from the Sun, is discovered by Clyde Tombaugh British biologist Arthur Tansley coins term ecosystem War, peace and politics Socialists proclaim The death of Capitalism Rise to...

Under the German occupation of France during World War II, his work was condemed by the Nazis as immoral. With the assistance of Varian Fry in Marseille, Masson escaped the Nazi regime on a ship to the French island of Martinique from where he went on to the United States. Upon arrival in New York City, U.S. customs officials inspecting Masson's luggage found a cache of his erotic drawings. Denouncing them as pornographic, they ripped them up before the artist's eyes. Pedestal Table in the Studio by André Masson (1922) This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... Varian Mackey Fry (October 15, 1907–September 13, 1967) was a New York-born American journalist who ran a rescue network in Vichy France that helped approximately 2,000 anti-Nazi and Jewish refugees to escape the Nazis. ... Marseilles redirects here. ... Martinique is an overseas département (département doutre-mer, or DOM) of France, located in the Caribbean Sea. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the state of New York and the entire United States. ...

Living in New Preston, Connecticut his work became an important influence on American abstract expressionists. Following the war, he returned to France and settled in Aix-en-Provence, painting a number of landscapes there. New Preston is a census-designated place located in Litchfield County, Connecticut. ... American post-World War II art movement. ... Aix (prounounced eks), or, to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, Aix-en-Provence is a city in southern France, some 30 km north of Marseille. ... The Harvesters, by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, 1565: Peace and agriculture in a pre-Romantic ideal landscape, without sublime terrors The term Landscape as most westerners use it, is completely entrenched in western notions of land, nature and art. ...

External link

• Masson at the Tate Gallery (http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ArtistWorks?cgroupid=999999961&artistid=1590&page=1) (includes images of his work)

• André Masson Home Page (http://www.connectotel.com/masson)