Surreal Artists: Who and What

The whole concept of surrealism was started by André Breton, a French poet and writer. His movement grew in size and reach until it eventually affected all spheres of art. A few members of that early movement are well-known artists who are revered even today. This article highlights some of their achievements.

The first artist we should note is Salvador Dali i Domenech, commonly known as Salvador Dali. He is one of the world’s most renowned surreal artists. His most famous piece is “The Persistence of Memory.” His artwork evolved over time and he was later cast out of the surrealist movement as the members thought that his work (and his persona) no longer represented them.

René François Magritte is reputed to be a great influence on today’s pop culture – and on the conceptual and minimalist art forms in general. The inspiration for some of his paintings came from him witnessing the dead form of his mother as they pulled her from the river Sambre with her dress covering her face. He is noted for his technique of giving recognizable objects new meaning.

The next notable artist in the surrealist movement was Raymond Georges Yves Tanguy. He was first inspired to try his hand at artwork when he saw a painting by contemporary artist Giorgio de Chirico. Tanguy possessed no formal training and is noted for producing pictures that were full of abstract shapes, limited color palette and huge landscapes. His paintings were one of a kind, nonfigurative approaches to surrealism.

Max Ernst, a German by birth, was originally a student of philosophy. He gave this up to pursue painting, an art form in which he had no formal training. Art then became his life. He is noted for being one of the founding members of the Dada group. He developed a new technique called frottage in which pencil rubbings were used to create images. He went on to create grattage as well with his fellow surrealist Joan Miro. He also created decalcomania in which paint was pressed between two surfaces.

Not to be left out is one of the most influential surrealist artists. That person is Giorgio de Chirico. He is well-known for his collection of works titled “Metaphysical Town Squares.” His paintings were based on his experiences, not fantasies. His work strongly influenced many of the other surrealist artists including Dali, Ernst and Tanguy.

With the rise of the Internet, we are now able to access many online galleries that display surrealistic art. Of course, with so much artwork online, there is a wide variance of quality. Some of it is quite good, while the rest is, well… Occasionally however, we can find something that is really remarkable. Here’s a site that interests us: Drawings, Paintings & Prints