Dora Maar studied painting in André Lhote’s studio in the second half of the 1920s. She turned to photography on the recommendation of Emmanuel Sougez. In Neuilly, from 1931-1934, she ran a studio with Pierre Kéfer devoted to advertisements, nudes, and portraits of famous personalities. Starting in 1934, she became close to the surrealists, and produced her best-known photomontages in her studio at 29 rue d’Astorg.