Antonin Artaud

Antonin Artaud, Antoine Marie Joseph Artaud (1896-1948) was a poet, novelist, actor, designer, dramaturge and theatre theorist.
Following a religious education with the Marist Fathers which gave him a solid knowledge of Catholic theology, Artaud, who had delicate health, started his work as a writer striving for the absolute, although in his lifetime, his ideas were poorly understood. He became the director the ‘Central Surrealist’ (the Bureau of Surrealist research), which he eventually left over an argument about joining the French Communist Party.
After working as an actor, theatre and costume designer, he founded the Alfred Jarry Theatre with Roger Vitrac and Robert Aron, relying on financial support from Dr René Allendy. At this theatre, he attempted to profoundly transform theatre and literature, inventing the concept of the ‘Theatre of Cruelty’ which came out in his collection of essays “The Theatre and its Double” – to little success.
He turned to cinema at this point where he got a few small parts and also continued pursuing his writing. In 1936, he travelled to Mexico in search of the Tarahumaras people, to find their ‘Ancient Solar Cult’ and to try out the drug Peyote.
On his return, he suffered with hallucinations and ideas of persecution and was judged dangerous, ending up incarcerated in a psychiatric hospital in Paris.
He was able to get out thanks to the intervention of his friends, allowing him to pursue his literary and theatre career up until his death.

IHe is the author of, amongst other things, “L’art et la mort” (Art and Death), "Les nouvelles révélations de l'être", (The New Revelations of Being), "Le théâtre et son double" (The Theatre and its Double), «Pour en finir avec le jugement de Dieu" (To Have Done with the Judgement of God).

A quote: “I have never studied anything, but I have lived through everything and it has taught me something”.