Surrealism started  as a philosophical movement which found truth in the world through the subconscious mind and dreams, rather than through logical thoughts.  Surrealism included artists, writers and poets.
The movement began in the mid-1920s in France and it has been considered as an evolution of Dadaism. It reached its peak in the 1930s.

Writers began the Surrealist movement. In 1924, Andre Breton explained Surrealism in his Surrealist Manifesto, and a few years later artists began to paint in the style he described. Surrealists wanted to free their minds of rational thought, to write or paint the ideas that were deep in their minds.

Surrealism explored the subconscious areas of mind. Artists tried to represent dreams or random thoughts.

Famous Surrealism Artists

Giorgio de Chirico – In many ways this Italian artist was the first of the Surrealist painters. He founded the school of Metaphysical Art which influenced the Surrealist artists of the future. He is also classified as futurist.

Max Ernst – A German painter who was part of the Dadaist movement and then joined the Surrealists.

Alberto Giacometti – A French sculptor who was the leading sculptor of the Surrealist movement. Around 1935 Giacometti left his surrealistic style to develop a more figurative style. He is most known for his Walking Man sculpture.

Marcel Duchamp – A French artist who became involved in both the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. He was also associated with Cubism.he created ready-mades, combining everyday found things into new, enigmatic objects.

Paul Klee – A Swiss painter who mixed Surrealism with Expressionism. His most famous paintings include Around the Fish, Red Balloon, and Twittering Machine.

Rene Magritte – Magritte was a Belgian artist who liked to challenge people’s ideas on what they should see through his Surrealist paintings. Some of his famous works include The Son of Man, The Treachery of Images, and The Human Condition.

Salvador Dalí and Joan Miró were Spanish painters who joined the Surrealist movement. Since this webpage is Spanish we will make a separate post for each of them.

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