WALLACE BERMAN (1926-1976)

Wallace Berman is often considered the father of "assemblage" art. Known for his collages and sculptural constructions, his influences stemmed from Dada and the Beat movement to surrealism and diverse cultural movements including Jazz music, poetry and film as well as Kabbalah. In particular, the Verifax collages, which he created by manipulating and combining found images and photocopying the assembled products using the Verifax photocopy machine produced by Kodak, are among his most iconic series. Berman was one of the earliest artists to incorporate mechanical reproductions into his work and would prove highly influential in the California Pop art movement. In addition to his career as a formal artist, Berman influenced a number of disciplines and influences, as the face of the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover, with a cameo in Easy Rider and known for his underground mail art publication, Semina, Berman was one of the earliest American artists to inhabit and redefine cross-cultural expressions beyond the art "object".