Option 2 (an art movement/period exhibition; focus on Surrealism 

The art movement of Surrealism is an artistic movement that emerged in the early 1920s in France, which sought to express the subconscious mind through art (Choucha, 2018). It was a response to the devastation of World War I, and its founders sought to create an art that was irrational, dream-like, and mysterious images that challenge the boundaries of reality. Surrealism was heavily influenced by Dadaism, which sought to reject all traditional conventions of art and create works that were anti-art. The founders of the movement, including André Breton, Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, René Magritte, Yves Tanguy, and Joan Miro’, experimented with a range of techniques to create works that were both unsettling and thought-provoking. This exhibition focuses on the early works of these artists, exploring the ways in which they laid the groundwork for the Surrealist movement. The focus will be on the years leading up to the publication of the Surrealist Manifesto in 1924, as this was the period during which many of the key ideas and techniques of the movement were developed. The exhibition features numerous works from various artists, selected to showcase the diversity of styles and techniques used by the movement’s founders in their early years. The exhibition is organized thematically, with each work reflecting a different aspect of Surrealism’s origins. The early works of the Surrealist founders were characterized by a fascination with the irrational, the subconscious, and the dream world and these elements became central to the Surrealist movement. By examining these early works, we gain a deeper understanding of the movement’s aesthetic and philosophical underpinnings, as well as its impact on the wider cultural and political landscape of the time. Through a carefully curated selection of paintings, drawings, and other media, “The Birth of Surrealism” invites visitors to explore the fascinating world of early Surrealism and discover the origins of this groundbreaking movement. 

The exhibition begins with a selection of works by André Breton, who is considered the founder of the Surrealist movement in 1924 (Breton, 2018). His works, including the painting “The First Manifesto of Surrealism,” emphasized the importance of the subconscious mind and the role of chance in artistic creation.  Salvador Dali, known for his iconic melting clocks, utilized the technique of the “paranoiac-critical method,” which sought to tap into the subconscious mind to create works that were both irrational and hyper-realistic.  Max Ernst, a German painter, sculptor, and collagist was known for his collage works and used chance and automatism to create unexpected juxtapositions of images. This allowed him to create unique and enigmatic images.  

René Magritte, a Belgian painter, was famous for his paintings of bowler-hatted men and used surreal imagery to challenge the viewer’s perceptions of reality. His works often featured ordinary objects and scenes presented in unexpected ways. Yves Tanguy was a French painter who was famous for his otherworldly landscapes and dreamlike imagery. Lastly, Joan Miró was a Spanish artist who created a unique style of Surrealism that blended elements of abstraction and figuration. His paintings are known for their playful, childlike quality and use of bright, bold colors.  

One of the arguments that the exhibition makes is that Surrealism was a reaction to the traumatic experiences of World War I, which had shattered the traditional values and beliefs of European society (Tythacott, 2018). The movement sought to redefine the role of art in society by embracing the irrational and the fantastic, which were seen as a way to escape the horrors of the war and the rationalism that had led to it. 

Another argument that the exhibition makes is that Surrealism was not just an artistic movement but also a political one. The Surrealists sought to challenge the established order by advocating for the liberation of the individual and the collective from the constraints of society and reason (Lowy, 2019). Their works were often provocative and controversial, pushing the boundaries of what was considered acceptable in art and society. 

Furthermore, the exhibition argues that the early works of the Surrealists were characterized by a fascination with the irrational and the dreamlike, which was often expressed through the use of unexpected juxtapositions, disorienting perspectives, and bizarre imagery. The artists experimented with different media, from painting to sculpture, photography, and collage, and often combined them to create hybrid works that defied categorization. 

All in all, the exhibition argues that the early works of the Surrealist movement were instrumental in shaping the direction of the movement and laying the groundwork for its later developments. By exploring the themes of the subconscious, the irrational, and the fantastic, the artists of the movement sought to challenge the conventions of art and society and pave the way for a new era of creative expression.