1. Surrealism

2. What is Surrealism?
Surrealism is a type of art that is done is a realistic style (3-dimensional rendering) but shows bizarre, dreamlike, or fantasy scenes.

3. The Surrealists began their movement after seeing the horrors of World War I
This was also the dawn of the field of psychology, and artists began to develop an interest in the subconscious, and symbolism.
Surrealist artists and writers regard their work as an expression of the philosophical movement first and foremost, with the works being an artifact.
It was, above all, a revolutionary movement.

4. Today’s Task:
Look at the artwork, and jot down/sketch what catches your eye, artist names, etc…
Get inspired!
Persistance of Memory, Salvador Dali

5. Drawing heavily on theories adapted from Sigmund Freud (father of psychology), Surrealists saw the unconscious as the source of the imagination.
This movement continues to flourish today. Continued thought processes and investigations into the mind have produced some of the best art ever seen.

6. Characteristics of Surrealism: Realistic, yet impossible
Dreamlike, representing unconscious thought
Juxtaposing (combining elements that do not belong together)
Representing specific images in a strange way
Symbolism

7. False Mirror, Rene Magritte

8. The Reproduction, by Rene Magritte
Shows a bizarre mirror scene, which could never really happen.
The artist’s goal is to make you think, and to question reality.

9. The Mystery of Nature

10. The Hat Makes the Man, Max Ernst

11. Salvador Dali
Soft Self-Portrait
The Temptation of St. Anthony

12. More by Salvador Dali
Notice the optical illusion created by the egg yolk, representing the rising sun.

13. The Eye of Silence, Max Ernst

14. More by Max Ernst

15. Rene Magritte
The Lovers
The Son of Man

16. More by Magritte

17. Frida Kahlo
What the Water Gave Me

18. Indefinite Divisibility, Yves Tanguy

19. Vladimir Kush

20. Vladimir Kush

21. Your Assignment:
Create a piece of Surrealist artwork after studying several surrealist pieces.
Must be accompanied by 5 preliminary sketches and artist statement.

22. Contemporary and Student Work

24. Belle-Pilar Fleming
Jake Pierce, 2009

25. Elan Orr
Liz Zaff

26. Steps
Choose symbols, ideas, objects, a person, or event that you would like to represent.
Create a series of brainstorm sketches that represent all the thoughts that come to your mind when you think of your subjects.
Be creative- make your sketchbook a journal of your imagination.

27. Work can have a specific concept like this:

28. Or can be a subtle layering of symbols, like this:

29. Websites to check out: http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/s/surrealism.html
: with links to individual artists
modern surrealist examples