Arman was born in  France in 1929.  In 1957, Arman became interested in common objects as works of art. First he did what came to be called his "allures d"objet" (object impressions) where he would dip an object into paint and press it on canvas; thereby leaving the object's shadow or impression. Then he figured the object itselt was worth paying attention to and he started to "treat" them in his own way. Arman's way of treating objects is very special: his intention is to remove the material function of an object so that as a work of art its only possible function is to "teed the mind" and not serve a material purpose anymore. What better way could he find to achieve that result than by breaking, slicing or even burning objects such as a violin, telephone, typewriter or even a whole car. The interesting fact is that once emotionally detached from the circumstances associated with a broken violin, one can grow to appreciate its abstract beauty; and, in a sense, Arman is literally teaching you that things you never thought could be regarded as attractive can indeed turn out to be very aesthetic.  Because of this achievement, Arman has come to full worldwide recognition.