Surrealism was a 20th-century philosophical, literary, and artistic movement seeking to channel the unconscious to access the imaginary. Proponents of Surrealism rejected the notion of understanding life in rational and conventional terms in favour of asserting the valueIn color theory, value refers to the lightness or darkness of a color. This concept is crucial for artists and designers because it helps create depth, contrast, and visual interest in their work. Value is one of the three properties of color, alongside hue and saturation. Defining Value Value indicates how light or dark a color appears. It ranges from More of the unconscious mind, dreams, the strangely beautiful, and the uncanny.
André BretonAndré Breton (1896 – 1966) was a French writer and poet, best known as an original member of the Dada group and one of the founders of the Surrealism movement. His seminal writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto (Manifeste du surréalisme), published 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism", encouraging chance and spontaneity in artistic practices. Breton More, the leader of a group of poets and artists in Paris, first defined the term “Surrealism” in his Manifesto in 1924, as:
“pure psychic automatismDefinition and Origin Automatism in art, especially within the Surrealist movement, refers to creating without conscious control. It aims to tap into the subconscious mind, bypassing rational thought. Originating in the early 20th century, automatism was a reaction against traditional artistic methods. Techniques of Automatism • Drawing: Artists create spontaneous drawings, often without looking at the paper. This allows for More, by which one proposes to express, either verbally, in writing, or by any other manner, the real functioning of thought. Dictation of thought in the absence of all control exercised by reason, outside of all aesthetic and moral preoccupation.”
Strongly influenced by psychoanalysis, the Surrealists believed that the rational mind repressed the power of the imagination. They were further influenced by Karl Marx, convinced that the psyche had the power to reveal the contradictions in the world and incite revolution.
Each artist of the surrealist movement worked with their own imagery, relying on recurring motifs of their own, e.g., through dreamlike experiences. In fine arts, the imagery was often perplexing and outlandish, meaning to challenge the viewer’s predefined assumptions. Frequent imagery derives from nature, such as the bird paintings by Max Ernst, Joan Miró’s biomorphic depiction, or Salvador Dalí’s insect images.
This way of rejecting conventional artistic values attracted writers and artists worldwide so that Surrealism quickly became an international movement. The impulse to tap the unconscious mind, the interest in primitivism and myth influenced many later movements, making the surrealist style still relevant today.