surrealism art

surrealism art

The Influence and Evolution of Surrealism in Modern Art

1. Introduction to Surrealism

The aim of the book.— Some of the developments of the surrealist spirit in the domain of art that I should like to discuss here and which, for want of a more personal term, I shall call “surrealism”, though without making any claim to impose the label upon each and every instance or even upon every work manifesting the same tendencies which I have in mind. Should it appear paradoxical to exclude, in other words, from the field of surrealism, works which have often been produced by the most ardent of surrealists, it must be put down to that absurd but no less venerable convention, accepted by some and scorned by others, which assumes that to a given form of thought or feeling there must correspond a style or, if one prefers, a specific aspect derived indirectly from it. For the fact is that, although, as artists, we may use all the attributes of surrealism so that we may take part in the most beautiful direct struggles of our epoch, very few of us consider it a duty to obey a rule, to allow our works to be of any specific kind other than the determination not to accept any.

2. Key Characteristics of Surrealism Art

Surrealist art uses visual imagery from the depths of the subconscious mind and primitivism in order to expand the human imagination. Surrealism was influenced by Dadaism, Cubism, and the theories of Freud, as opposed to representational art, which depicts reality. The goal of the surrealist movement is to challenge art to represent a new type of reality by connecting it with imagination and the dream world of artists. Surrealism visualizes and expresses the ongoing conflict between the individual’s internal and external realities. While most surrealist art depicts reality, it “tells” imagistic and outrageous stories about life. These stories would be hard to tell otherwise using ordinary depictions of reality, but can be easily interpreted through the eyes of a child looking at the dream world near them. Surrealistic art is based mainly on the belief in the relationship between surprise and the unexpected, which is effective and interrelates within simplicity and the art for art’s sake. At the same time, it provides us with striking visions from artists’ imagination that are mostly impossible to reproduce.

Surrealism is seen as the 20th century’s reaction against the rationalist tendencies of modernity and often its spiritual destruction. Surrealist art diminished the certainty of logic and showed the absurdity of established ways of life. The influence of the revolutionary art of the first decades of the 20th century can be seen in modern art creations. The contributions of artists like Man Ray, Salvador Dali, Magritte, Miro, Max Ernst, and Hans Arp were influential all over the art world and especially affected modern advertising and design.

3. Major Surrealist Artists and Their Works

Max Ernst (1891–1976), born in Germany, the aesthete with his fingers in many pies, was the founding member of the Dadaist group and one of the first to embrace Surrealist logic. Among his best-known works are The Elephant Celebes (1921) and The Virgin Spanking the Christ Child Before Three Eyes of the Lord (1926). For this large group of varying artists, each with his or her very own different approach to Surrealism and unique figurative world, they are all united by a sense of poetic beauty inseparable from the question of art. The artists in question awoke fragments of a beauty that is perhaps a little subconscious and unexplored within viewers, but one that is still capable of moving minds and hearts. Such a possibility is characteristic of all art. The magnificence of these artists, however, is that they achieved this aesthetic unmasking with that modern artistic spirit striving always to set the observer’s mind wandering, forever exchanging roles with the interpreters of the work.

a. Surrealist Painters

3.1 Major Representatives of the Period and Their Notable Works

3. Major Surrealist Artists and Their Works

1. Introduction 2. The Beginnings of Surrealism in Art 2.1 The Contribution of Giorgio de Chirico and Surrealism Before Breton 2.2 Breton’s Manifestos and Theories 2.3 The Political Dimension 2.4 The Surrealist Period 3. Major Surrealist Artists and Their Works 3.1 Major Representatives of the Period and Their Notable Works 3.2 Surrealist Photographers 3.3 Surrealist Cinema 3.4 Surrealism and Literature

4. Surrealism’s Impact on Contemporary Art

Indulgence in the so-called unique ‘surrealist period style’ should be dismissed when viewing contemporary works that can be linked, whether geographically or temporally, to the original surrealist art moment. Surrealism’s colonial approach led to their developing minority cultures embracing this ideologically promiscuous and anti-bourgeois art. As the art historical narrative no longer sustains this society of the spectacle, placing blame on its diversity and inclusivity is clearly misguided. Several marginalized centers may henceforth affirm their presence. Dimensionality is applicable to many anti-art and postmedia expressions in contemporary art. Surrealism is easily referenced in the art world, as it resonates with not only the art consumer but also a larger audience.

Surrealist tendencies continue to influence contemporary art. The prevalence of irrational and subconscious thought in our society, with its undulating forms of repression and expressions of sexual and political drives, has sustained interest in surrealism’s revolutionary validity. While the aesthetic outcome might not always appear as readily translatable, the predisposition towards rethinking – and even re-drawing – the boundaries set between art and life as an aesthetic challenge or happening, is one of the humblest gifts imparted by the surrealist movement. The unresolved questions presented to us by surrealism, which still have the power to exhilarate and disquiet us today, deflect our individual artistic practice towards continually transcending any stagnating status quo.

5. Conclusion and Future Trends in Surrealism

The Conclusion and Future Trends in Surrealism are discussed in one section, DISCUSSION. There is a fundamental relationship between the Surrealism Movement of the 1920s and 1930s and the contemporary art world in the 21st century. Although some of the pioneers of Surrealism may be more radical than those who tried to subvert the so-called norms in contemporary art, contemporary works have completely absorbed some of the methods and the illogical and exotic spirit of Surrealism. Surrealism, combined with exposure to the art style within modern commercial culture, has given birth to an industry called “Commercial Surrealism.” However, the spread of Surrealism is multidimensional and diversified, and it is not just limited to visual art or artistic endeavors. The movement has had a great impact on literature, photography, film, and more. As we all know, the birth of Pop art was also associated with an interest in graphic art. The American artist Warhol was considered to be a Neo-Surrealist, as well as British Dali’s participation in many commercial designs. The fashion industry and the music industry have also benefited greatly from Surrealism.

Surrealism was one of the most influential literary and art movements in Europe from the 1920s to the Second World War. The main objective of the Surrealists was to unite the inner world of fantasy with the external reality, through which they affirmed the reality of previous irrational goals in the form of scientific, philosophical, or artistic endeavors. The purpose of this paper is to find out the influence and important value of Surrealism’s development in modern art. We discuss the Surrealist theory and its principal influences, its spread to international countries, the major artists of the movement and important works, and, more importantly, to discuss Surrealism’s impact on the development and influence of modern art and beyond.