What is Surrealism?

Salvador Dali

Surrealism is an artistic movement including the likes of Salvador Dalí, M.C. Escher, and Pablo Picasso to name a few. The term “Surreal” was first coined by French poet Guilliame Apollinaire, used in reference to the idea of “an independent reality existing ‘beneath’ our conscious reality”. Influenced by theories and writings on the unconscious mind by psychologist Sigmund Freud, the early 20th century Dada movement, and the studies of Carl Jung, Surrealism first began its inception into the art world in 1924. This movement produced works of art that were meant to challenge the constraints of human consciousness and rationality, depicting images, objects, and landscapes found in the unconscious mind. Many surrealist artists use a medium of expression called “automatism”, the act of automatically recording the thoughts and images that manifest in the artists’s mind, tapping into involuntary thought processes and often interpreting dreams experienced in unconsciousness.

There are no foundational “rules” for surrealism. Surrealist art exists through many mediums, whether it be sketched, painted, sculpted, collaged, etc. The objective of surrealist art is to somehow capture an unconscious image, thought, or dream and transfer it into the physical world through the lens of an artist’s interpretation. Many of the artworks in my portfolio were the subjects of vivid dreams I have had in the past of geometric shapes floating within vast expanses of space and time, often encountering people and objects that seem like they don’t belong, but are there for an unconscious reasoning. I like to explore the line between believable and unbelievable, reality and dream.

Planes twisting and melting in flight through the universe, everyday objects like windows and lamps behaving impossibly through physical space, infinite staircases, and forced-perspectives are all interpretations of worlds I have experienced in my unconscious imagination. The lack of constraints and rules for Surrealism make it an ideal outlet for my artistic flow, and I find exploring and dissecting my subconscious thoughts through physical drawings almost therapeutic.

The Surrealist movement is still the inspiration for many artists today, digital and traditional. There is no limit to the imagination of human beings, and the renditions of individual dreamscapes and unconscious thoughts of artists are still finding their way onto canvas, Bristol board, computer screens, and every other medium in our modern world. In my opinion, surrealism is an important reminder to viewers about the power of the imagination and the influence the subconscious has on our conscious realities, an essential diversion from the boredom and mundanity of the modern world.