Dadaism and Surrealism

            The destruction of the First World War resulted in an extreme amount of casualties and suffering which in turn, initiated a new trend for artists to reject the rationality of thought as a tool to critique society. This trend is known as Dadaism. Dadaist artists embraced the rejection of expression to eliminate the idea of the subjective art form. They figured if thinking rationally is what brought on World War I, then, thinking irrationally must prevent anything of the like. This is completely against the traditional conventions of art and challenges the artist as subject.

            One artist in particular who had a huge impact on Dadaism was Marcel Duchamp and his piece Fountain of 1917. With a piece such as Fountain, Duchamp questioned artistic convention and critiqued the idea of art itself. This sculpture is an example of what he called a “ready-made”, which is a mass produced, manufactured or a found-man-made object. Basically, he purchased a standard, functional urinal, positioned it with its back facing flat on a horizontal surface, and signed it as “R. Mutt”. Dadaism wanted to bring humor to the somber world by making fun of art. Apparently, his signature refers to the plumbing company called “Mott” and also is a symbol of the comic character, Mutt; this doesn’t really make sense and seems chaotic, just like Dadaism. Duchamp came up with works such as this to create a new thought for already existing objects. He wanted his viewers to wonder if his work should be characterized as art or not, and what exactly should constitute art. Before I learned about art history or any kind of artistic trends, I never considered something like Duchamp’s Fountain art, and I still don’t. However, I do appreciate the point he is trying to make. Art isn’t always about making a statement and I believe that art serves as a different purpose for everybody. I love that he forces a different perspective on mundane objects, and he impresses me with some of his ideas. Certainly, every person has the potential to be an artist, but it’s a combination of technical skill and the creativity to execute a work of art.

            Moreover, Dadaism grew more extreme and became a new art movement called Surrealism. This new style was based on the elements of Dadaism in its critique of society, but its primary focus was on the Marxist and Freudian influences, more specifically, an exploration of sexuality. One artist who is the epitome of surrealism in terms of Freudian values was Salvador Dali. His painting Birth of Liquid Desires of 1931 is the perfect example of the irrationality of dreams and the subconscious. For example, Dali uses imagery that could never be seen in reality, such as the large yellow biomorphic shape in the background. There is a theme of rejection and turmoil based on the two figures in the center of the piece, giving a sense of sexual desire and guilty arousal while the dark cloud looms above them. During the time that Dali painted Birth of Liquid Desires, his father expressed disapproval towards Dali’s wife, which explains the rejection underlying this piece. This is a surrealist work because of the repressed sexual desire and because there are so many different emotions conveyed, the painting doesn’t make any sense.