1906 b. Jan 3rd. in San Cristabal de La Laguna on the island of Tenerife. Spanish Painter. Son of wealthy merchant, Started painting at an early age. Suffered a serious illness which affected his growth and caused a progressive deformation of his facial bone frame and limbs.
1927 First trip to Paris as his father's agent. Early work influenced by Yves Tanguy and Pablo Picasso. 1931 After father's death had to earn living as illustrator. Self-portrait full of premonition as he showed himself with a deformed hand and with the veins of his arm cut. 1932 Meets Georges Hugnet. 1933 Met Andre Breton and Paul Eluard. Visited Tenerife with his girlfriend Roma a Polish pianist who was to be executed by the Nazis in the War. 1934 Admitted into Surrealist fold by Breton. Surrealist exhibition in Paris. Electrosexual Sewing Machine ~> from Lautreamont. 1935 On behalf of Gaceta de arte and Eduardo Westerdahl organizes the Exposicion Surrealista in Tenerife, which is visited by Andre Breton, Jacqueline Lamba and Benjamin Peret. July and August spent in Barcelona with Marcel Jean, Remedios Varo y Esteban Frances. A series of Cadavre Exquis Writes to Georges Hugnet. 1936 Surrealist exhibition in London, Paris and Tenerife. Worked with Max Ernst; Meets Wifredo Lam. 1937 Painting The Infernal Machine. Friends with Jacques Herold Forged and sold works attributed to Giorgio de Chirico in collaboration with Remedios Varo. Cadavre Exquis with Jean Arp, Sophie Taeuber, and Marcel Jean
1938 January; exhibits in Exposition Internationale du Surrealisme? at the Galerie Beaux-Arts, Paris; organized by Andre Breton & Marcel Duchamp. Affair with Marcelle Ferry. Throws bottle at painter Esteban Frances which instead hits Victor Brauner taking out his eye. 1940 In Marseille contacts Varian Fry to try to escape to America. He is part of the group at Villa Air-Bel which makes cards for the Marseille Card Game together with Andre Breton, Victor Brauner, Max Ernst, Jacques Herold, Wifredo Lam, Andre Masson, Jacqueline Lamba; (Frederic Delanglade not used). MeetsHans Bellmer. 1941 Part of neo-surrealist group of La Main a Plume. Fall out with Breton. 1940's friendship with Pablo Picasso, whose paintings he forged during the war 1945 m. Maud Bonneaud. 1946 Photograph ~> by Horst P Horst ~>. 1947 June, with Maud in London they spend time with Valentine Penrose. 1950Jan. with Maud visits Roland Penrose at Farley Farm. Separates from Maud. Affair with Nadine Effront who he meets in Belgium. 1952 Affair with Marie-Laure de Noailles. 1957 James Lord reveals to Marie-Laure that during this period Dominguez replaced some of her Picasso's with forgeries he (Dominguez) had done himself, selling the originals. It is also suspected he forged works by Paul Klee, Fernand Leger, and Jean-Paul Laurens. Dec. 31st. d. Paris. Suicide, slitting his wrists in the bath. Marie-Laure arranges for his burial in the Bischoffsheim family mausoleum in the Montparnasse cemetery. See also -> and also ->. See Bio + Works ~> See Timeline