With his revolutionary portrayals of the nude, fashion and portraits, Man Ray (1890-1976) opened a new, and likely the most creative, chapter in 20th century photographic history. In New York, then in Paris from 1921, he was one of the protagonists of the Dada and Surrealistic artistic and literary scenes becoming their preferred portrait and Œuvre photographers.
His relaxed portraitposes and photographic constructions, as well as his technical experimentation with Photograms („Rayographs“), solarization and multiple exposures were highly esteemed by his friends Tristan Tzara, André Breton, Max Jacob and, above all, Marcel Duchamp.
His photographs have become the incunabula of photographic history. Apart from his work for major fashion magazines like Harper's Bazaar und Vogue, an important further theme of his work was erotic photography.

Man Ray, the son of a Jewish Russian émigré, was born Emmanuel Radnitzky in Philadelphia. He spent most of his life in New York before emigrating to France. He died in 1976 in Paris.