Mr. Knife, Miss Fork

Mr. Knife, Miss Fork is a petite, embellished book that includes writing by René Crevel and 19 photograms by Max Ernst. To make the photograms, Ernst first employed frottage, a technique that involves rubbing graphite on a piece of translucent paper (or tissue) placed upon a textured material. He then laid the tissue paper over a photosensitive paper to create a reverse image––effectively turning the rubbing into a photographic negative. This technique was significant to the Surrealist movement; it allowed artists to draw images from the subconscious and create unusual juxtaposition through chance. The book’s text is a translation of the first chapter of René Crevel’s 1927 novel Babylone, a landmark of Surrealist literature that embraced themes of revolt and fear.