Magritte and Surrealism Mrs. Amor Computer Art sur·real·ism (-iz′əm) noun a modern movement in art and literature, in which an attempt is made to portray or interpret the workings of the unconscious mind as manifested in dreams: it is characterized by an irrational, fantastic arrangement of material

SURREALISM Surrealism, a movement in literature and the visual arts, was founded in between the two world wars in 1924 in Paris by André Breton. . Surrealism explored the subconscious and irrational elements of the human mind. Surrealism was dedicated to the expression of imagination. It was free of reason and convention. The essence of surrealism is the dreamworld. The surrealists believed that logic had failed humankind, so they turned to the unconscious and dreams in an attempt to transcend the boundaries of reason Heavily influenced by the writings of Sigmund Freud, they dedicated their movement to the expression of the imagination as revealed in dreams, free of the conscious control of reason.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967) Country- Belgian Movements- Surrealism Major Style and Contribution to Art Fantastic juxtapositions of realistic ordinary objects that do not normally go together objects or an unusual context giving new meanings to familiar things. Witty and amusing In Paris, Magritte's system of conceptual painting was formed, it remained almost unchanged until the end of his life. Interesting Fact-Called the invisible man among the surrealists. He dressed and behaved as everybody else. Much of Magritte’s work contained the unobtrusive, invisible man in the bowler hat

The Son of Man 1964 oil on canvas 116 x 89 cm This painting is of a green apple floating in front of the face of an otherwise conventional man.   Magritte said about the painting, “Everything we see hides another thing, we always want to see what is hidden by what we see.   There is an interest in that which is hidden…”  Because of the title, some think it may be the apple that was handed to Adam by Eve that the man is being blinded by.  Adam can’t see beyond the delicious apple, and we can’t see him.  This painting came about from a friends request for a self-portrait of Rene Magritte (note: one blue eye is poking out at the world) Trivia- image used in the movie-The Thomas Crown Affair

The Listening Room, 1953, oil on canvas, 99 The Listening Room, 1953, oil on canvas, 99.6 cm W x 80 cm H, William N. Copley Collection, New York. Magritte’s surrealistic works have a quiet, almost timeless clarity in which he juxtaposes unrelated objects. His paintings have wide appeal with their flat, matter-of-fact depiction of ordinary people and objects carefully orchestrated in impossible situations. Magritte’s surrealism is very controlled in terms of composition and technique, but can still be disquieting. In The Listening Room the viewer is struck by the sense of claustrophobia set up by this balloon-like apple in its too small space. Is this true? This is the painting that inspired the Beatles to form their record company APPLE RECORDS. I think Paul McCartney owns the original.

Madame Récamier by David and Magritte 1951 -oil on canvas (60. 5 x 80 Madame Récamier by David and Magritte   1951 -oil on canvas (60.5 x 80.5 cm) Purchased 1997 National Gallery of Canada During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Magritte made a series of "Perspective" paintings based on well-known works by the French artists François Gérard, Jacques Louis David, and Édouard Manet, in which he substituted coffins for the figures represented in the original paintings. The composition of this work is almost identical to that of David's famous portrait of Madame Récamier in the Louvre, except that a coffin has replaced the seductive young sitter, with a cascading gown left as the only trace of her previous existence. Executed in Magritte's carefully detailed style, this irreverent rendition of the Neoclassical masterpiece is suffused with mordant wit.