Johannes Baader. The Author of the Book "Fourteen Letters of Christ" in His Home. (1920). Cut-and-pasted gelatin silver prints, cut-and-pasted printed paper, and ink on book pages, 8 1/2 x 5 3/4" (21.6 x 14.6 cm). Purchase
In this photomontage, Baader presents a photograph of a domestic space in which various Dada ephemera hangs on the wall at upper left. A figure has been cut out of the center of the photograph to reveal the image of Baader's dummy exhibited at the Berlin Dada Fair in 1920. This work is, in fact, a sophisticated self-portrait of Baader in his persona as the "Oberdada," a parody of a high-ranking military figure (ex. Oberleutnant) of the Dada "troupes." The figure cut out of the upper photograph can be identified as Baader himself, as his reflection is visible in the mirror at the right edge of the cutout.