Surrealism, its sources and legacies
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| HART3063 | Cultural, Media and Visual Studies | 3 | 20 | Autumn UK |
- Code
- HART3063
- School
- Cultural, Media and Visual Studies
- Level
- 3
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Autumn UK
Summary
Surrealism’s founding tenets — of revolt against imperialism, capitalism, and empirical science, and its belief in the important role of the unconscious in everyday life and the revolutionary power of the imagination — emerged from art and literature linked to earlier movements, including Romanticism, Impressionism, Symbolism and Cubism. This course seeks to explore how artists as diverse as (but not limited to) Caspar David Friedrich, Paul Gauguin and Pablo Picasso informed the divergent practices of surrealist artists such as (but not limited to) Salvador Dalí, André Masson and Max Ernst, and it will consider how their earlier practices helped the surrealists to engage philosophically with the momentous historical events of the twentieth century. The course will proceed chronologically and consider surrealist encounters with the art and writings of a diverse range of artists, critics and theorists before exploring the legacies of surrealism and how its processes, ideologies and forms of representation continue(d) to influence artists working in Europe and beyond.
Target Students
Only available to students on BA History of Art, BA Film and Television Studies, BA International Media and Communication Studies and BA Liberal Arts.
Classes
- One 1-hour seminar each week for 10 weeks
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 10 weeks
This module will be delivered in a variety of ways which may include, lectures, seminars, labs.
Assessment
- 40% Coursework 1: Essay 2,000 words.
- 60% Coursework 2: Essay 3,000 words.
Assessed by end of autumn semester
Educational Aims
Provide a thorough study of surrealism, its historical referents, and its histories.Develop students’ ability to describe, analyse, and interpret works of art, and to relate them to key critical terms and ideas.Enable students to articulate the relationship between art and literature, within the context of surrealism and its influences.Introduce students to a range of critical and theoretical approaches.Foster an awareness of the critical debates surrounding the term modernism in art and art history.Situate those debates in relation to historical and cultural context.Learning Outcomes
Understand and describe a variety of art forms that fit broadly into the category of surrealism.
Describe and analyse definitions of surrealism and to relate them to broader cultural debates.
Identify and analyse the various historical referents pertinent to surrealism and to articulate the ways in which they were mobilised.
Consider a range of theoretical and critical models in describing and analysing works of art.
Ability to analyse visual and textual sources.
Ability to engage with diverse materials in order to compose an argument.