Dada and Surrealism

Dada is an artistic movement that began in Switzerland, but then spread across Europe primarily to Paris, and then to America due to some of the movements main 'players', Marcel Duchamp, Francis Picabia and Man Ray. Andre Breton is worth noting here, but he was arguably more influential in the Surrealist movement I think, as were the others to an extent.

Their activities covered many spectrums including the publication of journals, public gatherings and demonstrations, literature, film, graphic design, theatre and visual art. The funny thing is is that Dada is 'anti-art' art. It was a reaction to the bourgeois art world, they embraced chaos, they were reacting against the traditional aesthetics of art, they were intentionally 'opposite'. They looked to offend, and there is an underlying sense of wit and humour to their work.

It eventually evolved into Surrealism, but there are distinct differences between the two (books have been written on the subject, not enough space here...!). It was again a cultural movement that embraced art, film and the written word (La Revolution Surrealiste is of particular importance). Elements of surprise, juxtaposition and expression are apparent in their work, and I'm sure many of you are very familiar with a lot of the paintings and the artists involved in this movement.

There's so much on this subject to go and read, I find it really fascinating and the concepts behind a lot of the work is very applicable to anyones work today - it's an alternative way of looking at things. To sum up, Andre Breton once said whilst discussing Aesthetics,

"From a surrealist point of view, the way in which a picture is painted is virtually irrelevant. It is the mental reality that the picture 'looked onto' that is all important."

Images 1 - Rene Margritte, Time Transfixed
Image 2 - Joan Miro - Naked woman climing staircase
Images 3 & 4 - examples of Dada graphics
Image 5 - very funny. L.H.O.O.Q. when pronounced in French reads, 'She has a hot ass'...