Rene Magritte & Surrealism

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Sought to question our perception of reality

A painter associated with the Surrealists; first painted in Impressionist style

Surrealism was an art movement (1924-1945) in which artists attempted to give visual representation to dreams, fantasies, and the unconscious mind. Surrealism emphasized real objects in unreal situations, surprise, contradiction, distortion of scale/perspective, and shock.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The False Mirror, 1928.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Lovers, 1928. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Voice of Space, 1928.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Human Condition, 1933.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Portrait, 1935.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Key to the Fields, 1936.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Philosopher’s Lamp, 1936.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Pleasure Principle (Portrait of Edward James), 1937. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Time Transfixed, 1938. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Victory, 1939. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Wasted Footsteps, 1950. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Plain of Air, 1940. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Listening Room, 1952. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Personal Values, 1952. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Golconda, 1953. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Seducer, 1953. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Castle of the Pyrenees, 1959. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

The Sixteenth of September, 1956. Oil on canvas.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967)

Empire of Light, 1950-54. Oil on canvas.

The Magritte Museum in Brussels

Surrealism

Salvador Dali, The Persistence of Memory, 1931.

Surrealism

Salvador Dali, The First Days of Spring, 1929.

Surrealism

Face of Mae West Which May Be Used as an Apartment, c.1935.

Surrealism

The Sublime Moment, 1938.

Surrealism

Salvador Dali, The Eye, 1945.

Surrealism

Portrait of Katharina Cornell, 1951.

Surrealism

The Three Sphinxes of Bikini, 1947.

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

You will need to carefully plan your work. You will create a large composition either in marker, colored pencil or paint.

Will you have a theme or statement for your work (i.e. alienation, loneliness, advertising, religion etc.)?

Decide if you will use one-point or two-point perspective. Will it be a room or landscape? Interior or exterior?

Brainstorm some ideas for your work. It is normal to often create several sketches to try out your ideas.Use your sketchbook to visualize how you might want your project to look when you have completed it.

A Surrealist Room/Landscape

Will your paper be placed portrait or landscape?

Where will your horizon line be placed (low, eye-level or high)?

What items will be in the room? What structures will be in your landscape? Where will they be placed?

Will you change their sizes? Will you incorporate symbolism?

Surrealist Room/Landscape Criteria

Craftsmanship. Erase stray orthogonals (perspective lines) and fill in areas of color completely and neatly.

Effort. Put some thought into it!

Did you use one- or two-point linear perspective correctly? Ask for help if you are having difficulty.

Creativity. Come up with your own ideas! Try different compositions before deciding on a final one.