Fumage

Fumage is a surrealist art technique involving the creation of images or patterns using smoke. This is typically achieved by holding a piece of paper or canvas over a lit candle or other flame, allowing the smoke to deposit soot and create unpredictable designs. The artist can then manipulate the process by controlling the proximity of the flame, the movement of the paper, and the type of material being burned to achieve various effects.

The resulting images are often abstract and dreamlike, encouraging interpretation and evoking subconscious associations. Fumage is considered a form of automatism, where the artist relinquishes conscious control in favor of spontaneous creation guided by chance and the inherent properties of the materials.

Wolfgang Paalen is credited with developing and popularizing fumage as an artistic technique within the Surrealist movement in the 1930s. He saw it as a way to access the unconscious mind and explore the irrational aspects of human experience. While Paalen is most associated with the technique, other artists have also experimented with similar methods involving smoke and fire to create art.