Final answer:
The Dada movement, starting in 1916 in Zurich, was an anti-art movement emphasizing irrationality and protest against war, bourgeois values, and cultural conformity. It had a broad, yet transient influence, leading artists to later engage in other movements like Surrealism.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Dada movement is a significant art movement that emerged during World War I. It began in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1916 and expanded to other cities such as Berlin, New York City, and Paris. The movement was led by key figures like Hugo Ball, Emmy Hennings, Hans Arp, and Raoul Hausmann. Dadaism rejected traditional artistic standards, emphasizing anti-art, irrationality, and was regarded as a protest against the bourgeois, nationalist, and colonialist interests that were seen as root causes of the war. The movement employed chance, and its aesthetic decisions were often made at random, including the name 'Dada' which was reputedly selected by randomly pointing to a word in a dictionary.
Moreover, Dadaism was not only a reaction against the horrors of war but a cultural critique, promoting political and intellectual anarchy through its confrontational art. It was intentionally designed to be offensive, destructive, and demoralizing to existing societal and artistic norms. After the instability of the movement, which existed from around 1916 to the early 1920s, many artists moved on to other movements such as Surrealism and social realism. Despite its brief existence, Dada had a lasting influence on avant-garde movements including Surrealism, Nouveau réalisme, pop art, and Fluxus.