With Salvador Dali as its figurehead, the great ship of Surrealism traversed the turbulent seas of the early 20th century with sails billowing with dreams and desires. Inspired by the psychoanalytical practice of Sigmund Freud, the Surrealists championed the unconscious as the domain of truth, uninhibited by the standards or expectations of society. With techniques ranging from hypnotism to nocturnal walks to automatic writing, the likes of Andre Breton, Max Ernst, Brassai, and Meret Oppenheim produced paintings, drawings, texts, and films in which they sought to excavate their most intimate and primal instincts. The results abound with sexual fantasies, with mysterious, menacing creatures, and with the juxtaposition of seemingly contradictory objects or ideas. This book introduces the origins and the sensational legacy of the Surrealist movement, one of the most profound and enduring influences on film, theater, literature, art, and thought. Featured artists: Hans Arp, Andre Breton, Giorgio de Chirico, Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Alberto Giacometti, Paul Klee, Rene Magritte, Andre Masson, Matta, Joan Miro, Pablo Picasso, Meret Oppenheim, Yves Tanguy

About the Series: Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Genre Series features: A detailed illustrated introduction plus a timeline of the most important political, cultural and social events that took place during that period. A selection of the most important works of the epoch, each of which is presented on a 2-page spread with a full-page image and with an interpretation of the respective work, plus a portrait and brief biography of the artist. Approximately 100 colour illustrations with explanatory captions.

About the Author
Cathrin Klingsoehr-Leroy (b. 1958) studied art history, archaeology and German literature in Regensburg, Bonn and Paris. She wrote her doctoral thesis on "The Artist Portrait in the French Grand Siecle". Previously curator of the Fritz Winter Foundation at the Bayerische Staatsgemalde samm lungen in Munich, she is currently director of the Franz Marc Museum in Kochel am See. She has published works on Lyonel Feininger, Lovis Corinth, Franz Marc and the Blue Rider and in particular on Paul Klee.


Book Information
ISBN 9783836506731
Author Cathrin Klingsoehr-Leroy
Format Hardback
Page Count 96
Imprint Taschen GmbH
Publisher Taschen GmbH
Weight(grams) 560g