Assignment (Unit 101-105) - Idea Development - Surrealism



From the film Eraserhead

by David Lynch



I have always been really interested in surrealism.  From the paintings of Salvador Dali to the films of David Lynch (probably best known for his TV series Twin Peaks) surrealism has always captured my imagination so much more than any other genre.  I would really love to incorporate surrealism into my assignment. 

 

Dictionary: Surrealism, n. Pure psychic automatism, by which one proposes to express, either verbally, in writing, or by any other manner, the real functioning of thought. Dictation of thought in the absence of all control exercised by reason, outside of all aesthetic and moral preoccupation.

Encyclopedia: Surrealism. Philosophy. Surrealism is based on the belief in the superior reality of certain forms of previously neglected associations, in the omnipotence of dream, in the disinterested play of thought. It tends to ruin once and for all other psychic mechanisms and to substitute itself for them in solving all the principal problems of life.



Apparition of the Aphrodite of Cnidus 
by Salvador Dali

It seems that surrealism clears the way to be as creative as you want.  You can literally create fantastic images from the most mundane photographs.  Your only limitations is the power of your own imagination and to me this is what makes surreal art stand out above anything else.



Observatory Time by Man Ray

Now the only question is, what would I actually photograph?  People obviously, but using Man Ray as a reference point, I would like to go down the same road as him.  It would be important to make sure the photographs I take could stand on their own merits before I attack them with photoshop so I would think about doing a before and after gallery.

I think this is a theme I will definitely expand upon.