Wednesday, 5 June 2013

Surrealism - 1920-1950

Surrealism is a cultural movement that was founded in 1924 by Andre Breton, and is best known for its visual artworks and writings. Surrealism style uses visual imagery from the subconscious mind to create art without the intention of logical comprehensibility.
Surrealism developed out of the Dada activities during World War I and the most important center of the movement was Paris. From the 1920s onward, the movement spread around the globe, eventually affecting the visual arts, literature, film, and music of many countries and languages, as well as political thought and practice, philosophy, and social theory. Influenced by the psychoanalytical work of Freud and Jung, there are similarities between the Surrealist movement and the Symbolist movement of the late 19th century.

Salvador Dali “The Persistence of Memory

Surrealist works feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur; however, many Surrealist artists and writers regard their work as an expression of the philosophical movement first and foremost, with the works being an artefact. Leader André Breton was explicit in his assertion that Surrealism was above all a revolutionary movement.
   The Surrealist movement eventually spread across the globe, and has influenced artistic endeavors from painting and sculpture to pop music and film directing. The greatest known Surrealist artist is the world famous Salvador Dali. Some of the greatest artists of the 20th century became involved in the Surrealist movement, and the group included Giorgio de Chirico, Man Ray, Rene Magritte, Max Ernst, and many others.

3 comments:

  1. Michael S. Bell, a specialist in American Art, researched the surrealist phenomena while he was Curatorial Assistant at the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco. His research led him to the conclusion that: "It remains a dire need, if truth be still an honorable cause, to set forth an option upon the records of time by which considerate humanity might judge for itself the merits and the players in one of our century's most vilified and degraded forms of expression."

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  2. Max Ernst (2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and Surrealism.

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  3. This genre is very popular among teens. No doubt this way of art will exist longer than we can imagine. I really impressed, it seems like a magnet for me while watching such paintings.

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