bios, morphe

Derived from the Greek words bios (life) and morphe (form), Biomorphism refers to abstract shapes that evoke the forms of living things like plants, organisms, and the human body. As a movement, it emerged from the fertile roots of Dada and Surrealism in the wake of the Great War and the ensuing cultural cataclysm. Artists of all mediums responded to the breakdown of social, political, and moral order with avant-garde movements that sought to change the definition of art itself. Some found inspiration in the unknowable subconscious while others developed an interest in the physical sciences and the biological structures and systems that create life. All worked intuitively, endeavoring to reveal the truth, however ugly, of their experience and identity in changing times.