This interest in exotic cultures had already been established within France due to the regular expositions the country held to showcase the objects and people of the French colonies. The fascination with specifically black culture and the "primitivised" existence associated with it flourished in the combined aftermath of the First World War (1914–1918) and the 1931 Colonial Exposition when artists yearned for a simpler, idyllic lifestyle to counter modern life's mechanistic violence. Avant-garde artists recognised for their negrophilia interests include poet Guillaume Apollinaire, artists Tzara, Man Ray, Paul Colin, surrealists George Bataille and Michel Leiris, and political activist Nancy Cunard.