Surrealism

1. Surrealism Rene Magritte, The Son of Man, 1964

2. Surrealism began as a literary movement after World War I. • Surrealist literature was based on the non rational, its creators being drawn to the Dadaist. Cover of the first edition of the publication Dada. Edited by Tristan Tzara. Zürich, 1917.

3. Dada was a movement started in 1916 during WWI. • Dadaists believed that art, a reflection of the absurdity of war and the insanity of the world was basically stupid and must be destroyed. • However, in order to express their outrage, the Dadaists created works of art. • This contradiction would be their downfall. • Dada ended in 1922. Marcel Duchamp, Fountain,1917

4. Surrealism is a style in which fantastic visual imagery from the subconscious mind is used with no intention of making the artwork logical or comprehendible. • It began in France in 1924 with the publication of the First Surrealist Manifestoby Andre Breton. Yves Tanguy, Indefinite Divisibility,1942

5. From the beginning, Surrealism developed along two very different lines. • Automatist Surrealism which was expressed by artist such as Joan Miro and Andre Masson. • Illusionistic Surrealism which was exemplified by artist such as Salvador Dali, and Rene Magritte. Andre Masson, Automatic Drawing, 1924 Salvador Dali, Invisible, 1929-33

6. Automatists Surrealism was a direct relationship to automatic writing • Automatic writing meant that the mind was to be emptied of all purposeful thought and free associations were to be expressed in writing. • Automatist Surrealism leaned towards an interest in biomorphic (life forms) and abstraction. • It dictated thought without the control of the mind. • It was abstract but sometimes its imagery would suggest organisms or natural forms. Joan Miro, Harlequin’s Carnival, 1925

7. Illusionistic surrealism also called Naturalistic Surrealism presented recognizable scenes that would Metamorphose into a dream state. • Artist would sometimes use irrational content or absurd Juxtapositions. Rene Magritte, La Chateau des Pyren, 1959

8. Joan Miro i Ferra ( 1893- 1983) was born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. • He was a painter, sculptor and ceramist who studied at the Barcelona school of Fine Arts and the Academia Gali. • Before 1920 Miro’s work showed a wide range of influences including Fauvism, Cubism and the Romanesque style of Spain. • Later he was influenced by Surrealism and Dada although he never became a member in any artistic movement. Joan Miro, The Tilled Field, 1923-24

9. When asked about the creation of his paintings Miro replied “How did I think up my drawing and my ideas for painting? I’d go to bed and sometimes I hadn't had supper. I saw things, and I jotted them down in a notebook. I saw shapes on the ceiling..” Joan Miro, Dutch Interior I, 1928

10. Under the influences of poets and writers he developed a unique style using organic forms and flattened picture planes drawn with sharp line. • He also drew on his memory, fantasy and the irrational to create his works of art. • His dreamlike visions often have a whimsical quality with images of playful distorted animal forms, twisted organic shapes and odd geometric objects. Joan Miro, The Escape Ladder, 1939

11. Miro worked in a variety of media including etching, lithographs, watercolor, pastel, collage and ceramic sculpture. Joan Miro, Wall of the Moon, and Wall of the Sun, 1957-1959, at the UNESCO building in Paris

12. Andre- Aime- Rene Masson (1896-1987) was a French artist who studied in Brussels and Paris. • He fought and was wounded for France during world war I. • Masson's first work showed his interest in cubism. • He developed a strong interest in automatic drawing and later became associated with Surrealism. Andre Masson, Pedestal Table in the Studio, 1922 (early cubism work)

13. Masson would often force himself to work under extreme conditions such as long periods without food or sleep, or even under the influence of drugs. • He believed that this would help his art be free from rational thought and control, and influence his work through the subconscious mind. Andre Masson, The Louis XVI Armchair, 1938

14. By the end of the 1920’s Masson found automatism too restricting. • He turned from Surrealism to more structured style often producing works with violent or erotic themes. • He also created a number of painting in reaction to the Spanish Civil War. • By the end of the 1930’s he had return to Surrealism. Andre Masson, The Workshop of Dedalus,1939

15. During War World II his work was condemned by the Nazis who had occupied France. • Masson was arrested but managed to escape and make his way to the United States. • U.S customs officials found some of Masson’s erotic drawings during their inspection of his luggage. They considered them pornographic and tore them up. • After the War, Masson returned to France where he began painting Landscapes. Andre Masson, In the Tower of Sleep, 1938

16. Salvador Dali (1904-1989) was a Spanish Painter who studied at the school of Fine Arts in Madrid, Spain. • Before 1929 Dali painted in various styles including Impressionism, Pointillism, Classicism and Futurism. • When introduced to Surrealism, Dali accepted the style with full force, later considering himself the only true Surrealism artist. Salvador Dali, The Metamorphosis of Narcissus, 1937

17. Dali’s work could be described as Illusionistic or Naturalistic Surrealism. • His paintings included recognizable subjects and scenes that were represented in a dream like state. • Dali’s works are characterized by realistic detail with brilliant colors especially in his fantastic landscapes. Salvador Dali, Shades of Night Descending, 1931

18. Dali studied the writings of Sigmund Freud and invented what he called the “Paranoiac-critical method” to assist him in creating his work. • In his paintings, he aimed “ to materialize the images of concrete irrationality with the fury of precision…in order that the world of imagination and of concrete irrationality may be evident”. • Dali’s most famous work, The Persistence of Memory. (1931) is an example of precision, reality and imagination. Salvador Dali, The Persistence of Memory, 1931

19. Although Dali considered himself a true Surrealistic, other members of the Surrealistic Movement would not accept him because they considered him overly commercial. • Dali also designed and produced Surrealistic films, illustrated books and crafted jewelry. • His later paintings often depicted religious themes and were more classical in style. Salvador Dali, Christ of St. John on the Cross, 1951

20. Rene Magritte (1898-1967) was a Belgian painter born in Lessines, Belgium. • He studied at the Academie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. • Until 1926 Magritte worked in a wallpaper factory and also designed posters and advertisements. • During that year he produced his first surrealist painting, The Lost Jockey (Le jockey perdu), and in 1927 had his first exhibition in Brussels. Rene Magritte, The Lost Jockey, 1926

21. Critics were not kind in their comments about the exhibition. • Feeling like a failure, Magritte moved to Paris where he became friends with Andre Breton. • He also became involved with the surrealist group. Rene Magritte, The mysteries of the Horizon, 1955

22. Magritte’s work often involved a juxtaposition of ordinary objects. • He would also use an unusual context in order to give new meanings to familiar things. • An excellent example of this is his painting, The Treachery of Images (La trahison des images), which shows a very simple pipe. • Below the pipe, Magritte wrote “This is not a pipe.” Rene Magritte, The Treachery of Images, 1929

23. There were many influences in Magritte’s life that help to inspire his paintings. Not all of them were positive. • In 1912 his mother committed suicide by drowning herself in the River Sambre. • Magritte was present when her body was recovered. • The image of his mother floating in the water with her dress obscuring her face would be a life altering and lasting image that would influence a body of work. Rene Magritte, The Lovers (Les Amants), 1928

24. Just as other Surrealists, Magritte’s work makes the viewer question their reliance on the conscious and the rational. Rene Magritte, Time Transfixed, 1938

25. Salvador Dali, Geopoliticus Child Watching the Birth of the New Man, 1943

26. Salvador Dali,Galatea of the Spheres, 1952

27. Georgio de Chirico (1888-1978), Love Song 1914

28. Pierre Roy (1880-1950), Papillon, 1933

29. Bibliography • Fichner-Rathus, Lois. Understanding Art ,Seventh Edition. California: Wadsworth, Thomson, 2004 • Hamilton George Heard, 19th and 20th Century Art New Jersey, Prentice –Hall, New York: Harry N.Abrams,1970 • Hobbs, Jack, Richard Salome, Ken Vieth. The Visual Experience. Massachusetts: Davis Publications, Inc, 2005 • Kendall, Richard, ed “Three Centuries of French Art.” Selections from The Norton Simon, Inc Museum of Art, and The Norton Simon Foundation. San Francisco, Mackenzie & Harris; 1973 • Kleiner, Fred, Christin Maniya. Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, Twelfth Edition, Volume II. California: Wadsworth, Thomson, 2005 • Lazzari, Margaret, Dona Schlesier. Exploring Art. California: Wadsworth, Thomson, 2002 • Salvador Dali Society. Visual Dali, March 12, 2008. http://www.virtualdali.com/ • Stephen D. King. A History of Surrealism, Feb. 23 2008. http://www.surrealist.com/ • Surrealism. Feb. 22, 2008. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealism • Walford, John. Great Themes in Art. Prentice Hall. 13 Nov 2007 • Virtuo, The Magritte Site, March 12, 2008. http://www.magritte.com/