Plate IV from Let There Be Fashion, Down With Art (Fiat modes pereat ars)

Plate IV from Let There Be Fashion, Down With Art (Fiat modes pereat ars) by Max Ernst is one selection from a pivotal portfolio of eight lithographs created in 1920. Executed in the early phase of the artist’s involvement with the Dada movement, this graphic work exemplifies Ernst’s commitment to mechanical reproduction as a means of artistic critique. As a key piece documenting the chaotic and experimental spirit of the post-WWI European avant-garde, this print is held in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York.

The aggressive and ironic title, Fiat modes pereat ars (Let fashion be, let art perish), immediately signals the antagonistic attitude of Dadaism toward traditional aesthetic values and bourgeois artistic consumption. Created in the crucial year of 1920, the portfolio originated in the vibrant French and Germanic art environments, solidifying Ernst’s reputation within the international Dada network. Ernst utilized graphic prints to communicate the movement's radical challenge to industrial society and established cultural norms, often employing absurd juxtapositions and found imagery reminiscent of collage.

The use of lithography was deliberate; this reproducible medium allowed Ernst to disseminate his provocative messages widely, subverting the notion of the unique, handcrafted masterpiece prized by the traditional art market. Ernst’s technique translates the visual disruption of cut-and-paste aesthetics into the precise, stark geometry achievable through printmaking. This portfolio, and Plate IV specifically, contributes to the overall narrative of artistic absurdity and political disillusionment that defined the early 1920s. This influential series of prints remains a crucial historical reference point for scholars examining the transition from Dada cynicism to the more psychologically charged figuration that would define Surrealism later in the decade.