Surrealism

SURREALISM

Surrealism is an artistic movement and philosophy that first gained popularity in the 1920s. Initially, surrealism was an offshoot of Dadaism, which posited that traditional art should be replaced with anything "anti-art" and triumphed the ridiculous, the absurd, and a basic disregard for form. Andre Breton was the initial proponent of surrealism in literature and the visual arts. Much of his emphasis was on accessing the unconscious, as viewed by psychiatrist Sigmund Freud. Surrealism was a reaction to the philosophy of rationalism, which many felt had caused, through the Industrial Revolution, the disaster of World War I.(source: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-surrealism.htm)

The picture on the right is called The Persistence Of Memory, created by Salvadore Dali, 1931. I can see why this is one of his most famous works because I believe that the melted clocks represent long time memory. The melted clocks are like persistent memories because the clocks are still there but they are melting like a persistent yet fading memory.






Rene Magritte, another artist created this picture below. Called Les Amants [The lovers], it depicts two people in love both wearing blankets over their heads. Magriite could be suggesting that looks do not matter when it comes to love in a very surreal way by drawing blankets over their heads, making them not being able to see each other.
This painting was created in 1928.