Definition: Sur-re-al-ism (n) a style of art and literature developed principally in the 20th Century, stressing the SUBCONSCIOUS or non rational significance of imagery arrived at my automatism or the exploitation of chance effects, unexpected JUXTAPOSITIONS etc... Source
Surrealism stemmed originally from the Dada movement, and as with all movements, Surrealism had it's own manifesto. The manifesto is a massive document which outlines all the beliefs.
'Against Death
Surrealism will usher you into death which is a secret society. It will glove your hand, burying there in the profound M with which the work memory begins..'
The major spokesman of the movement - Andre Breton, who was a poet and also the author of the manifesto believed that surrealism was a way of merging the conscious and the unconscious, so fantasy and dream would be joined with the rational world.
Important Linking Over View
So, even what I have found out about surrealism so far, is so well related to my project - it's about juxtaposing life, death, and the conscious/subconscious worlds.
Surrealism also drew heavily from Sigmund Freud's theories Andre Breton saw the unconscious as the well spring of the imagination.
Very Very Important Linking Over View
Surrealism is now completely linked to my project as it runs along side Freud's theories of the unconscious mind, and the juxtapositions of opposites, such as life ad death etc, and the subconscious is then connected to the imagery I have used from fairy tales, which are all dreams/fantasy worlds that feature a lot of unknown darkness, but also happiness...
The work I have been doing has been surreal, however in a very contemporary, non traditional way.
Surrealist Artists and Influences
Rene Magritte (1902-1967)
Rene is a historical surrealist artist and I thought this painting 'philosophy of the boudoir' was interesting and slightly relates to my work because of the juxtapositions of the body parts. I feel thought the message behind this painting is that we reveal our inside on the outside - personal expression, however we define ourselves so differently on the outside, outside of the boudoir.
This is a more direct influence from Surrealism as Dmitri is inspired by surrealist artist - Dali and Ernst.
I really life the simplicity of the pencil on the white paper and a small amount of tone. How the shapes are morphed are very fluid and clever.
This is very very different from Rene's painting, but this is because it's ultra contemporary illustration. However I feel there is a slight surreal influence with the details on the face. It isn't very defined but there are other details and patterns there which form the face.
This is a very pretty looking image, and I love the composition I love the addition of typography too.
Again, this is a very different style of image from the previous two. Mainly because it's photography. But I feel there is a slight influence of Surrealism in it due to the juxtaposition of photos, the image behind is fairly subtle and slots in with the top layer image. It's quite a haunting piece, yet beautiful at the same time, another contrast.
This piece by Langdon Graves is an excellent example of contemporary Surreal illustration. It's slightly reminiscent of the painting by Magritte with juxtaposing body parts.
I think the rabbit hands are really clever, and there is something really sore and depressing about the picture.
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