Surrealism Quick History - cultural movement, began in the early 1920s - Aim: "resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dream and reality." - work as an expression of the philosophical movement, with the works being an artifact. - techniques that allowed the unconscious to express itself. - “Surrealist Manifesto” by Andre Breton Quotations/ Thoughts “Beloved imagination, what I most like in you is your unsparing quality.” – André Breton “Contrary to prevalent misdefinitions, surrealism is not an aesthetic doctrine, nor a philosophical system, nor a mere literary or artistic school. It is an unrelenting revolt against a civilization that reduces all human aspirations to market values, religious impostures, universal boredom and misery.” – André Breton, First Principles of Surrealism “Creativity is that marvelous capacity to grasp mutually distinct realities and draw a spark from their juxtaposition.” – Max Ernst - Are all photographs inherently surreal? Freezing of time. Eugène Atget Eugène Atget (1857-1927) - pioneer of documentary photography - determination to document all of the architecture and street scenes of Paris before their disappearance to modernization. - Most of his photographs were first after his death. Man Ray (1890-1976) - born Emmanuel Radnitzky - American, career in Paris - photograms “rayographs” - "It has never been my object to record my dreams, just the determination to realize them." - "To create is divine, to reproduce is human." First Surrealist Art Show! - with Jean Arp, Max Ernst, André Masson, Joan Miró, and Pablo Picasso at the Galerie Pierre in Paris in 1925. André Kertész Germaine Krull Eli Lotar Brassaï Maurice Tabard Dora Maar - baby armadillo suspended in formaldehyde - performs a typical Surrealist inversion, making an ugly, or even repulsive subject compelling and bizarrely appealing Tools of Surrealism Hans Bellmer's obsession with dolls was an effort to construct objects that would articulate his tortured desires in material form. rotation - Umbo (Otto Umbehr) Double exposure, combination printing, montage, and solarization dramatically to evoke the union of dream and reality. Influence - Henri Cartier-Bresson - Wols (painter) - Photojournalism.