Fleeing Nazi Germany in 1933, Breitenbach moved to France, where he met André Breton and was introduced to the Surrealist movement. Though he previously practiced photography in Munich, he soon began experimenting with techniques such as super impression and montage. It was during this time in Paris that Breitenbach took this photograph of Max Ernst. The red color of the seahorse draws the viewer's eye and demonstrates the photographer's continued fascination with manipulating his images.