Reynolds, Mary, 1891-1950

Mary Reynolds (1891-1950) was one of the most important figures of the Surrealist movement. A young war widow, she moved from the U.S. to Paris in 1919. In 1923 she met Marcel Duchamp and maintained a friendship with him until her death. During the 1920s, she studied with the Parisian bookbinder Pierre Legrain and applied her skills to books given to her by such friends as Max Ernst, Man Ray, Paul Eluard, André Breton, Jean Cocteau, and Salvador Dali. Reynolds was active in the French Resistance during Word War II, but eventually fled occupied Paris for the U.S. After the war, she returned to Paris where she lived until her death.

From the description of Mary Reynolds collection, 1940-1974. (Art Institute of Chicago). WorldCat record id: 80243145