--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a…" description: "\"Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a quasi-Buddhist religion of indifference. Dada puts an artificial sweetness onto things, a snow of..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg" --- # Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a… ![“Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a quasi-Buddhist religion of indifference. Dada puts an artificial sweetness onto things, a snow of butterflies coming out of a conjurer's skull. Dada is stillness and does not understand the passions.” quote by Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg) > “Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a quasi-Buddhist religion of indifference. Dada puts an artificial sweetness onto things, a snow of butterflies coming out of a conjurer's skull. Dada is stillness and does not understand the passions.” [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Dada rejects modernity, embracing a detached, almost Buddhist indifference, cloaking reality in artificial sweetness and stillness while ignoring passion. **In simple terms:** Dada opposes modernism, favoring indifferent stillness over passion. Key Takeaway Recognize when detachment masks true feeling. Themes art philosophy culture indifference spirituality Mood reflective critical contemplative Type analytical philosophical literary When to use this quote - art criticism - cultural analysis - personal reflection - creative practice Key Concepts Buddhist concepts modernist critique aesthetic theory Questions to Reflect On - How does indifference affect artistic authenticity? - Can stillness coexist with passion? A Different Perspective Dada’s indifference can stifle authentic emotional expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Buddhist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhist/) [Butterfly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/butterfly/) [Coming out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coming-out/) [Dada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dada/) [Dada Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dada-modern-5731143/) [Dada Puts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dada-puts-5731146/) [Dada Stillness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dada-stillness-5731145/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Indifference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifference/) [Indifference Dada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifference-dada-5731144/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Return](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return/) [Skulls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skulls/) [Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snow/) [Stillness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stillness/) [Sweetness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweetness/) ## Related quotes > [I speak only of myself since I do not wish to convince, I have no right to drag others into my river, I oblige…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/i-speak-only-of-myself-since-i-do-not-wish-to-convince-i-have-no/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Dada Dada Dada, a roaring of tense colors, and interlacing of opposites and of all contradictions, grotesques, inconsistencies: LIFE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-dada-dada-a-roaring-of-tense-colors-and-interlacing-of-opposites/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [To make a poem, take one newspaper, one pair of scissors, snip the words one by one and put them in a bag. Shake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/to-make-a-poem-take-one-newspaper-one-pair-of-scissors-snip-the-words/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [DaDa is beautiful like the night, who cradles the young day in her arms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-arp/dada-is-beautiful-like-the-night-who-cradles-the-young-day-in-her-arms/) [Hans Arp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-arp/) > [Invest your money in Dada! Dada is the only savings bank that pays interest in the hereafter!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-schwitters/invest-your-money-in-dada-dada-is-the-only-savings-bank-that-pays/) [Kurt Schwitters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-schwitters/) > [Being a fan of authentic Dada, I find today's art - what I call 'Bankers' Dada' - mind-numbingly dull. The most challenging work I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-childish/being-a-fan-of-authentic-dada-i-find-today-s-art-what-i-call-bankers/) [Billy Childish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-childish/) > [Dada has always been competitive and respected and I'm excited to design and promote a shoe that represents both of us so well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xzibit/dada-has-always-been-competitive-and-respected-and-i-m-excited-to/) [Xzibit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xzibit/) > [ “Dada Bhagwan’ is the Bhagwan \[God\], He is the Lord of the fourteen realms (regions) of the universe. He can give you whatever you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/dada-bhagwan-is-the-bhagwan-god-he-is-the-lord-of-the-fourteen-realms/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [When you think about Dada and the great moments in Modern Art, it's always the sense of when you're not sure that art is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-phillips/when-you-think-about-dada-and-the-great-moments-in-modern-art-it-s/) [Richard Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-phillips/) > [“Ambalal Muljibhai’ (Dada’s relative self) is under the control of worldly interactions, and ‘we’ (The Gnani Purush) are in the control of nischaya (realm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/ambalal-muljibhai-dada-s-relative-self-is-under-the-control-of/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [Dada was an extreme protest against the physical side of painting. It was a metaphysical attitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/dada-was-an-extreme-protest-against-the-physical-side-of-painting-it/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [“If there is something to protect you, it is religion. Who helped you meet Dada? Your own religion did.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/if-there-is-something-to-protect-you-it-is-religion-who-helped-you/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [I first came across Dada at art school in the early 80s. It was funnier and more anarchic than anything else I discovered. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vic-reeves/i-first-came-across-dada-at-art-school-in-the-early-80s-it-was/) [Vic Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vic-reeves/) > [“Explicación dada a una pregunta no formulada es confesión anticipada…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/explicaci-n-dada-a-una-pregunta-no-formulada-es-confesi-n-anticipada/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ \[Dada is\] perfectly kindhearted malice, alongside exact photography the only legitimate pictorial form of communication and balance in shared experience. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raoul-hausmann/dada-is-perfectly-kindhearted-malice-alongside-exact-photography-the/) [Raoul Hausmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raoul-hausmann/) ## More by Tristan Tzara > [Always destroy what is in you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/always-destroy-what-is-in-you/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [To make a poem, take one newspaper, one pair of scissors, snip the words one by one and put them in a bag. Shake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/to-make-a-poem-take-one-newspaper-one-pair-of-scissors-snip-the-words/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [“Art is at present the only construction complete unto itself, about which nothing more can be said, it is such richness, vitality, sense, wisdom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/art-is-at-present-the-only-construction-complete-unto-itself-about/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Art is not the most precious manifestation of life. Art has not the celestial and universal value that people like to attribute to it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/art-is-not-the-most-precious-manifestation-of-life-art-has-not-the/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Art needs an operation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/art-needs-an-operation/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Dada Dada Dada, a roaring of tense colors, and interlacing of opposites and of all contradictions, grotesques, inconsistencies: LIFE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-dada-dada-a-roaring-of-tense-colors-and-interlacing-of-opposites/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [“and on the other side for lack of sun there is death perhaps waiting for you in the uproar of a dazzling whirlwind with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/and-on-the-other-side-for-lack-of-sun-there-is-death-perhaps-waiting/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Everyone dances to his own personal boomboom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/everyone-dances-to-his-own-personal-boomboom/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Any work of art that can be understood is the product of journalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/any-work-of-art-that-can-be-understood-is-the-product-of-journalism/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Is it a spiral of water in the tragic gleam of a revolver, an egg, a glistening arc or the floodgate of reason, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/is-it-a-spiral-of-water-in-the-tragic-gleam-of-a-revolver-an-egg-a/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [“Morality is the infusion of chocolate into the veins of all men”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/morality-is-the-infusion-of-chocolate-into-the-veins-of-all-men/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [Let us try for once not to be right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/let-us-try-for-once-not-to-be-right/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [I write a manifesto and I want nothing, yet I say certain things, and in principle I am against manifestoes, as I am also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/i-write-a-manifesto-and-i-want-nothing-yet-i-say-certain-things-and/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [But let's speak of art for a moment. Yes, art. I know a gentleman who makes excellent portraits. This gentleman is a camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/but-let-s-speak-of-art-for-a-moment-yes-art-i-know-a-gentleman-who/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) > [You'll never know why you exist, but you'll always allow yourselves to be easily persuaded to take life seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/you-ll-never-know-why-you-exist-but-you-ll-always-allow-yourselves-to/) [Tristan Tzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) [Explore all 26 Tristan Tzara quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a quasi-Buddhist religion of indifference. Dada puts an artificial sweetness onto things, a snow of butterflies coming out of a conjurer's skull. Dada is stillness and does not understand the passions.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tristan Tzara" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a-return-to-a-quasi-buddhist/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a-return-to-a-quasi-buddhist/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc7/tristan-tzara-21849_artist_dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a_2352486.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Dada is not modern at all, it is rather a return to a quasi-Buddhist religion of indifference. Dada puts an…” — Tristan Tzara", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tristan Tzara", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-tzara/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Dada is not modern at all,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a-return-to-a-quasi-buddhist/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-tzara/dada-is-not-modern-at-all-it-is-rather-a-return-to-a-quasi-buddhist/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```