Dadaism and Surrealism

"It is not the fear of madness which will oblige us to leave the flag of imagination furled." ~ Andre Breton, "Manifesto of Surrealism"

The world of art is always influenced by the historical moment in which the movement originated. The concepts of Dadaism and surrealism were the direct product of artists witnessing the atrocities of the First World War which would become even more unpalatable during the events of the Second World War (Hoffman 2-3). The visual presentation of both movements can be initially jarring. Dadaism has been described as "anti-art." Instead of beautiful icons of religious scenes or young women, the paintings of this movement are often images of war and violence painted in harsh colors to illustrate the harshness of the world around the artist . Surrealism is by the very definition of surreal, something beyond what the normal person can understand (Claybourne 4)....
[ View Full Essay]