Surrealism and Rene Magritte

Surrealism is a cultural and artistic movement that began in Europe in the 1920's. Surrealism is, basically, a physical expression of the subconscious mind. Paintings, literature, and films are created without any intention of logicality or comprehensibility.

Rene Magritte (1898-1967) was the eldest son of a poor family. He was always fascinated by art, and spent all of his free time as a child drawing and painting. One of the main inspirations for his work came in 1912, when his mother committed suicide by drowning herself. Rene was present when her body was retrieved from the water, and vividly remembered seeing her body floating peacefully and her apron covering her face. A series of paintings based on this experience appeared in the late 1920's. Another source of inspiration happened when he was just seven years old. In the dead of night, three hot-air-balloonists ran into rough winds and were forced to land on and bring the balloon through his house. Little Rene was awed by the spectacle. He loved the idea of mixing two wildly divergent items and seeing what would result.

Rene was a dirt-poor wallpaper factory worker when he created his first surrealist painting, The Lost Jockey. It was received harshly by art critics, and a depressed Rene moved to Paris. There he met Andre Breton, the founder of the surrealist movement. Rene was a member of his group for a while, but they soon split over moral differences. Despite this, Rene painted almost nonstop.

Public interest in his artwork climaxed in the 1960's. Exhibitions were held all over the United States. It was during this time that Rene created his most famous painting, Son of Man. Sadly, Rene died just three years later of pancreatic cancer. His witty artwork ensures his place in history as the artist who made us laugh and think at the same time.