THE 10 MOST INFLUENTIAL REPRESENTATIVES OF SURREALISM - ART - 2024

Among the most prominent representatives of surrealism we can mention painting artists like Dalí, poetry like Bretón or cinema like Buñuel. Surrealism is an artistic movement that began in Paris, France, in 1924 with André Breton's “Surrealist Manifesto”.

In this manifesto, Breton defines surrealism as: «pure psychic automatism through which an attempt is made to express orally, in writing or through any other method, the real functioning of thought. In the absence of any control exercised by reason and exempt from any aesthetic or moral requirement ”.

In this sense, the surrealist movement is based on the belief that the sleeping mind, also known as the unconscious mind, is the source of imagination. For this reason, works of Surrealism are often presented as dreamlike images, drawn from dreams, with outlandish perceptions of space, incongruities, and fantastic elements.

Surrealism introduced new techniques. In painting, for example, frottage (from the French "rub") and decalcomanía were incorporated, methods that, according to the artists of the movement, allowed to express the contents of the subconscious.

Decal decal consisted of applying paint to an unframed canvas, folding it and expanding the paint, and then opening it again. Thus the artist had no control over the results of the decal.

For its part, in literature, mechanical writing was used, which consisted of writing everything that came to mind without stopping to even think about the fact of writing.

Also, surrealist artists ventured into photography and film. In this way, the short film "An Andalusian Dog" (1929), directed by Luis Buñuel with the participation of Salvador Dalí, is one of the greatest exponents in terms of footage. Thus, among the main representatives of this aesthetic are:

Exponents of the surrealist movement

1- André Breton (1896 - 1966)

Breton was a French writer and poet, considered the father of surrealism. His writings show certain characteristics of Dadaism, an artistic movement that preceded Surrealism and that laid the foundations for the development of Surrealism.

Among his writings, "Nadja" (1928), "What is surrealism?" (1934) and »Surrealist Manifesto» (1924), work that supported the free expression and the liberation of the subconscious.

2- Salvador Dalí (1904 - 1989)

Dalí was a Spanish painter and writer. He is probably one of the best known artists of the movement. He became part of the surrealist circle after the premiere of “Un perro andaluz”.

In his paintings, he combined super-realistic and hyper-realistic elements, which show a strong influence from the psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud. His works include "The persistence of memory" (1931) and "Swans reflecting elephants."

3- Luis Buñuel (1900 - 1983)

Buñuel was a Spanish director. His films are characterized by the representation of both dream images and wishes of the subconscious.

He collaborated twice with Salvador Dalí, in 1928 (“An Andalusian dog”) and in 1930 (“The golden age”). One of his most emblematic productions is "The Exterminating Angel", in which a group of people are locked in a dining room for unknown reasons.

4- Frida Kahlo (1907 - 1954)

Frida Kahlo was a Mexican painter known for her self-portraits. Her life was marked by illness: at 6, she suffered from polio, a disease that damaged her right leg, and at 18, she suffered a car accident that seriously injured her spine and pelvis. In total, she underwent 35 operations, a period in which Frida Kahlo began to paint.

His paintings are strongly influenced by Mexican culture and express the suffering he had to go through after the accident, as well as the physical and mental damage that it caused him.

5

Miró was a Spanish painter characterized by representing hallucinations in his paintings. His paintings were painted in a limited range of bright colors, highlighting yellow, blue, red and green.

Miró's paintings do not seek to represent the unconscious, but rather reflect the artist's automatism.

6- René Magritte (1898 - 1961)

Magritte was a Belgian painter. At first glance, his works appear to be highly realistic in character, however, upon careful observation, incongruous images and scenes will emerge.

Magritte's works sought to reflect what lies behind appearances; For this, he used to paint isolated objects, so that the viewer wondered about their meaning.

Its period between 1920 and 1924 could be highlighted, where it shows influences from different artistic currents such as Cubism, Orphism, Futurism or Purism.

7- Max Ernst (1891 - 1976)

Ernst was a German painter, representative of the Surrealist movement, as well as its predecessor, the Dada movement. His collaboration with surrealism was of great importance: in 1925, he introduced the frottage and decalcoming techniques.

In many of his works anthropomorphic and fantastic figures are depicted in Renaissance landscapes. Others reflect the trauma suffered during World War I.

8- Dorothea Tanning (1910 - 2012)

Tanning was an American sculptor, illustrator, painter, and writer, who joined the surrealist circle after World War II. In 1942 she met Max Ernst and in 1946 they married. Her works reflect exotic images, psychotic dreams, and metamorphic figures.

9- Marcel Duchamp (1887 - 1968)

Duchamp was a French artist who grew up in a family of artists. Of his five brothers, three of these were dedicated to art as a profession.

Duchamp's works went through various stages, beginning with Cubism. He also collaborated with the development of Dadaism and Surrealism. One of his most notable works is "Nude descending the ladder."

Despite having started his artistic career as a painter, he abandoned this art and dedicated himself to sculpture. As a sculptor, he presented objects from everyday life without even altering them. Duchamp's work inspired other modern movements, such as the pop-art of posterity.

10- Pablo Picasso (1881 - 1973)

This Spanish painter stood out for his sculptures and paintings with influences from various styles, including surrealism. He also addressed ceramics, drawing or costume design for theatrical pieces.

Pablo Picasso is considered one of the most important painters of 20th century Spanish art for being a witness of his time. His most important works "El guernica", represents the tragedy of the bombing of the Spanish town of Guernica, exhibited today in the Reina Sofía Art Museum in Madrid.

References

1. Brahman, Diana (2001). Surrealist Art in NOMA's Collection. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from noma.org.
2. Breton, André (1924). Manifesto of Surrealism Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from exquisitecorspe.com.
3. Surrealism and Women Artists. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from lacma.org.
4. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from saylor.org.
5. Salvador Dalí: Biography. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from philamuseum.org.
6. Frida Kahlo. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from cdn.shopify.com.
7. Turkel, Daniel (2009). The Message of Surrealist Art: Automatism, Juxtaposition and Dreams. Retrieved on February 26, 2017, from danturkel.com.