# Dorothea Tanning artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/dorothea-tanning/
Profile generated: 2026-05-12T18:11:15.808Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1910-08-25
- Death date: 2012-01-31
- Nationality: American, French
- Movements: Surrealism
- Common media: oil painting, lithography, sculpture (soft sculpture), drawing and works on paper, set design and costume design

## About Dorothea Tanning

Dorothea Tanning (1910–2012) was an American painter, sculptor, printmaker, and poet who became one of the most distinctive voices of the Surrealist movement. Born to Swedish immigrant parents in Galesburg, Illinois, she was largely self-taught as an artist, pursuing her own vision after brief formal training in Chicago. A transformative visit to MoMA's 1936 exhibition Fantastic Art, Dada, Surrealism redirected her life toward the avant-garde. By the early 1940s she had joined the circle of exiled Surrealists in New York and married the German artist Max Ernst. Over a career spanning seven decades, Tanning moved from meticulously rendered dreamlike figurative paintings to pioneering soft-sculpture installations and later to luminous abstract canvases. She also published poetry and two memoirs. Her work is held by major museums worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Tate in London, and the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

## Common works and media

Tanning's body of work includes finely detailed Surrealist oil paintings of dreamlike interior scenes with intertwined female figures, such as Birthday (1942) and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (1943). She produced lithographs and works on paper throughout her career. In the 1960s and 1970s she created innovative soft sculptures made from stuffed fabric. Her later period yielded prismatic abstract paintings. Collectors may also encounter costume and set designs from her ballet collaborations, as well as illustrated books and poetry publications.

## Market and appraisal context

Dorothea Tanning's works appear at auction in the Post-War and Contemporary Art and Prints and Multiples categories. Her early Surrealist oil paintings from the 1940s, characterized by intricate figurative dreamscapes, are the rarest and most sought-after lots. Prints and lithographs are more frequently available. Appraisal value depends on medium, period, size, provenance, condition, and exhibition history. Recognition of women Surrealists has grown substantially, which has influenced collector interest in recent years. Collectors should verify authenticity and provenance carefully, especially for unsigned prints.

## Appraisily data basis

This Appraisily artist page combines research from museum collections, artist authority records, and the artist's official estate site with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lot data when those records are available. Sources include the Museum of Modern Art, Tate, the Getty ULAN authority file, VIAF, RKD, and the Dorothea Tanning estate.

## Sources

- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/5806
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/dorothea-tanning-2024
- Dorothea Tanning Estate: https://www.dorotheatanning.org
- RKD — Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/76486
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q234324
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/85510249/
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500000210
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n80034162