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Originally Posted by Tom Edgerton
This example isn't technically innovative for its time, nor does it depict anyone particularly charismatic or remarkable within that culture, but I'd consider running into a burning building to save it.
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But of course! At the moment there is a resurgence of belief and interest in humanity, the individuality of the artist, and the striving for technical excellence (by which I mean one that is imbued with an honest joy of the workings of paint and joy of the thrilling illusions that can be rendered, and the tangible, tactile realism that can be achieved).
At the time of Max Ernst, however, mankind had just gone through the Great War and, not surprisingly, there was a great disillusionment that followed. Such focus on the attainment of individual genius seemed callous when so many individuals had fought and lost their individual lives for the protection of their people. Many people also lost their belief in, and hope for, the future, and some of the responses to this were Dadaism and Futurism where madness, chaos and the impact of machines on humankind were values (or anti-values) that seemed vital to express.
The "truth", Mischa, is quite subjective to the individual artist, the individual race, the individual country, and individual era, for example. We take from the past what speaks to us most in the time and situation we are in. The striving for newness was at first, I believe, indicative of a fleeing from the horrors of the world wars, and then an expression of the impact of industrialism and twentieth century popular culture. Many if us now are tired of the intransigence of the constant renewal of the new, and have a deep need for something more permanent and solid and, as you say, universal.
So, running into a burning building to rescue that painting is something that I would probably do too, Tom, but it would arguably have been anathema to Max Ernst and others of his era.