| Years active | 1920s–1950s |
|---|---|
| Location | France, Belgium |
| Major figures | Breton, Dalí, Ernst, Magritte |
| Influences | |
| Influenced | Abstract expressionism, Post-modernism |
Surrealism was a cultural movement which developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I and was largely influenced by Dada.[1] The movement is best known for its visual artworks and writings and the juxtaposition of distant realities to activate the unconscious mind through the imagery. Artists painted unnerving, illogical scenes, sometimes with photographic precision, creating strange creatures from everyday objects, and developing painting techniques that allowed the unconscious to express itself.[2] Its aim was, according to leader André Breton, to "resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dream and reality into an absolute reality, a super-reality", or surreality.[3][4][5]
Works of Surrealism 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 (for instance, of the "pure psychic automatism" Breton speaks of in the first Surrealist Manifesto), with the works themselves being secondary, i.e. artifacts of surrealist experimentation.[6] Leader Breton was explicit in his assertion that Surrealism was, above all, a revolutionary movement. At the time, the movement was associated with political causes such as communism and anarchism.
History edit
The word 'surrealism' was first coined in March 1917 by Guillaume Apollinaire.[7] He wrote in a letter to Paul Dermée: "All things considered, I think in fact it is better to adopt surrealism than supernaturalism, which I first used" [Tout bien examiné, je crois en effet qu'il vaut mieux adopter surréalisme que surnaturalisme que j'avais d'abord employé].[8]
The [surrealists] aimed to revolutionize human experience, in its personal, cultural, social, and political aspects. They wanted to free people from false rationality, and restrictive customs and structures. Breton proclaimed that the true aim of Surrealism was "long live the social revolution, and it alone!" To this goal, at various times Surrealists aligned with communism and anarchism.
By October 1924 two rival Surrealist groups had formed to publish a Surrealist Manifesto. Each claimed to be successors of a revolution launched by Appolinaire.
[The groups, led by Yvan Goll and André Breton ] clashed openly, at one point literally fighting, at the Comédie des Champs-Élysées,[9] over the rights to the term Surrealism. In the end, Breton won the battle through tactical and numerical superiority.[10][11]
Exquisite Corpse edit
The movement in the mid-1920s was characterized by meetings in cafes where the Surrealists played collaborative drawing games, discussed the theories of Surrealism, and developed a variety of techniques such as automatic drawing.
The best-known collaborative drawing game was called "Exquisite Corpse". It is a method by which a collection of words or images is collectively assembled. Each collaborator adds to a composition in sequence, either by following a rule (e.g. "The adjective noun adverb verb the adjective noun." as in "The green duck sweetly sang the dreadful dirge.") or by being allowed to see only the end of what the previous person contributed.
This technique was invented by surrealists and is similar to an old parlour game called Consequences in which players write in turn on a sheet of paper, fold it to conceal part of the writing, and then pass it to the next player for a further contribution.
Later the game was adapted to drawing and collage. An image of a person is drawn in portions, with the paper folded after each portion so that later participants cannot see earlier portions.[7]
Notes and references edit
- ^ https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/surr/hd_surr.htm
- ^ Barnes, Rachel (2001). The 20th-Century art book (Reprinted. ed.). London: Phaidon Press. ISBN 978-0-7148-3542-6.
- ^ André Breton, Manifeste du surréalisme, various editions, BnF, Bibliothèque nationale de France
- ^ Ian Chilvers, The Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 611, ISBN 0-19-953294-X
- ^ "André Breton (1924), Manifesto of Surrealism". Tcf.ua.edu. 1924-06-08. Retrieved 2012-12-06.
- ^ Breton, André (1997). The Automatic Message (First. ed.). London: Atlas Press. ISBN 978-0-9477-5799-1.
- ^ Hargrove, Nancy (1998). "The Great Parade: Cocteau, Picasso, Satie, Massine, Diaghilev—and T.S. Eliot". Journal for the Interdisciplinary Study of Literature 31 (1)
- ^ Jean-Paul Clébert, Dictionnaire du surréalisme, A.T.P. & Le Seuil, Chamalières, p. 17, 1996.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Durozoiwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "The AHRB Centre for Studies of Surrealism and its Legacies. | Research Explorer | The University of Manchester". www.research.manchester.ac.uk.
- ^ Robertson, Eric; Vilain, Robert (April 6, 1997). Yvan Goll—Claire Goll: Texts and Contexts. Rodopi. ISBN 0854571833 – via Google Books.