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Today’s Doodle celebrates the 127th birthday of French author and 1surrealist photographer Claude Cahun−best-known for their purposefully unsettling yet playful self-portrait photography that challenged the gender and sexuality 2norms of the early 20th century.

Claude Cahun was born on this day in 1894 in Nantes, France, into a Jewish family. As the grandchild of the influential French artist David Leon Cahun and a child of a newspaper owner, Cahun 3came of age surrounded by creativity. At 14, they met Marcel Moore, their lifelong partner and artistic collaborator. After moving to Paris to study literature in 1919, Cahun shaved their head and adopted their famed 4gender-neutral name5 in revolt against societal convention.

1　超現実主義者の
2　規範。、基準
3 成年に達する、成長する
4　中性的な名前　男にも女にも付けられる名前
5 に反抗して

Despite 6gender non-conformity being widely considered taboo in 1920s Paris, Cahun’s decision to publicly identify as non-binary met with controversy, but they explicitly rejected the public fuss. Cahun explored gender-fluidity through literature and melancholic self-portraiture such as the 1927 series “I am in training, don’t kiss me.” This work depicted the artist costumed as a feminized weightlifter, 7blurring the line between masculine and feminine stereotypes. In addition to their lifelong artistic work, Cahun worked with others to resist fascist occupation. The French government awarded their efforts with the Medal of French Gratitude in 1951.

6　性不適合・・・かつて、今もそうかもしれないが男女はそれぞれ定めた規範を守ることを期待されていた。
男はズボンを履き、女はスカート、男の子の色は青、女の子は赤とかみたいなステレオタイプのこと。
クロード・カアンが生きた時代は、それを破ることはタブー視されていた。そのことがここで言いたいこと。
gender non-conformityという単語は何とも日本語に訳しづらい。LGBTよりも幅広いといえばいいのか。
7　ぼやける

In 2018, the Paris City Council named a street in honor of Cahun and Moore in the French capital’s sixth district, where the duo once lived. In addition to increasing focus on their pioneering work in the Surrealist movement and breaking down gender barriers in the photographic arts, Cahun’s work has influenced gender bending celebrities, the modern LGBTQ+ community, and conversations on identity and expression to this day.

Happy birthday, Claude Cahun!

今回はフランスのの芸術家クロード・カアン(1894-1954)の生誕127年を記念するものでした。