To the Rendezvous of Friends (The Friends Become Flowers, Snakes, and Frogs) (Au rendez-vous des amis [Les amis se transforment en fleurs, en serpents, et en grenouilles])

Max Ernst’s 1928 oil on canvas painting, To the Rendezvous of Friends (The Friends Become Flowers, Snakes, and Frogs) (Au rendez-vous des amis [Les amis se transforment en fleurs, en serpents, et en grenouilles]), represents a peak achievement in the artist's Surrealist period. Executed in 1928 in France, the piece employs traditional oil painting techniques to realize highly non-traditional, metamorphic subject matter. The scale and meticulous rendering of the canvas emphasize the complex, dream-like vision that was central to the aims of the French avant-garde movement at the time.

The painting rejects conventional narrative structure, instead offering a fantastical scene centered on the unsettling concept of transformation. As the lengthy title suggests, the composition depicts a gathering where the participants are undergoing bizarre changes, dissolving and reforming into elements of nature. Ernst focuses intently on the destabilizing shift from human to animal and plant life, specifically integrating forms that reference snakes, frogs, and various floral structures throughout the work.

This emphasis on irrationality and biological mutation is characteristic of Ernst’s exploration of the subconscious mind and his leading role in Surrealism. The forms, though grotesque or uncanny in their fusion, are rendered with precise, almost academic detail, contrasting the unsettling subject matter with a refined execution. The precision enhances the believability of the impossible meeting.

This work stands as a key example of Ernst’s contribution to the visual vocabulary of Surrealism, cementing his status among the most innovative French artists working between the wars. Like many major works from this period, high-quality reference images and documentation are frequently used for scholarly study and the creation of fine art prints. This seminal painting is held in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), where it serves as a central document illustrating the movement’s deep interest in psychic automatism and dream logic.