Contemporary surrealism

Artist’s favorite surrealism have been practiced on various platforms as I’ve discussed earlier. The idea behind it attracts me in a way that I’ve been discussing this with various people with similar interest.

In a way, we are living in a surreal world and the socially influenced trend can portray it directly or indirectly, the person with a bit of hint will be able to decode it. Taking examples from the current scenario and observing the possible platforms you can see even tech. savvy generation is using various filters on social media which is converting their faces and making them look like an animal, eg. Snapchat, Instagram. People are almost addicted to these features which in a way is a Distortion of Reality or can be tagged as Element of Surprise. This can bring a connect to characteristics of surrealism.

Talking about a very recent theater play “The Spectres of Shakespeare” by Pandies theatre that I’ve attended is also in a way surreal. Contemporizing the very famous plays of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, The Tempest, and A Midsummer Night's Dream by reframing the same idea so that today’s audience can connect with it is somewhere a surreal approach with an element of surprise by young theater groups.

My research about the contemporary ways of surrealism lead me to find out an interesting way of practicing it i.e. Collage making- it is a technique of an art production, primarily used in the visual arts, where the artwork is made from an accumulation of different forms, thus creating a new whole. A collage may sometimes include magazine and newspaper clippings, ribbons, paint, bits of colored or handmade papers, portions of other artwork or texts, photographs, and other found objects, glued to a piece of paper or canvas. Many people across the world have found out this new way of displaying their deep perception or you can say artistic sensibility which they are promoting through social media platform.

So I tried to connect with few artists and fortunately got revert on my questions out of curiosity of their understanding of surreal and their artworks. Their opinion will make you think that how artists are working with the surreal approach.

Starting a conversation with Tyler Varsell (Connecticut, USA) who is a collage artist got influenced by her father who is very artistic and always encouraged her creative expression from a young age. She always relished sketching, painting, designing and other creative things. Although her affection for collage and mixed media art started when she was in high school.

She was first introduced to collage in high school, through altered books. She loved the idea of taking an object and altering it into something completely different. “With collage, anything is possible and there are a lot of "happy accidents", which keeps it exciting,” she added.

How is social media helping you? “With social media today, artists have the opportunity to so easily share their work with the world. I feel so fortunate to be a part of a community online that supports one another's art. I am inspired by others on a daily basis through social media and hope I can provide inspiration to others as well.”

Her perception of surreal is combining foreign with the familiar. “It could almost be a reality, but there is something off or strange, similar to the way dreams weave together subconscious memories, impressions, and symbols. It's a world that makes you uncomfortable.

“Symbols and metaphors that give surreal approach in her artwork are Scales, larger-than-life objects or people. Location is also important, people in unexpected or dream-like environments.

About her artworks and major elements, she majorly focused on paper collages that are quite minimal, with usually only two or three elements. Although, she also loves to create more intricate, embroidered mixed media works on canvas “because identity is a common theme in my work, I like to explore people in different environments. Lately, I've also been drawn to images of food and plants.”

I can only hope to keep creating, exploring, and trying new things. I go through stages where I have no inspiration and don't create anything, then something random will inspire me to try something new. I hope to continue exploring using different materials, concepts, and compositions.

I can only hope to provide a different perspective on the world around us. I think successful art at least makes people think, question and open their mind to new possibilities and ideas.

Defining the significance of her art form she added “I think artists are constantly pushing and challenging what it means to be an artist, and what it means to create something authentic. I think that's why collage is so popular right now - anyone can cut, glue, and create something out of something else. Through collage, you can constantly challenge the meaning of our surroundings.”

Discussing people's outlook towards art in today's world is “art is always a mirror of culture and society at present”. It is inspiring to me to see such provocative work - art that challenges politics, gender roles etc. Art has also become so much more accessible thanks to the internet and social media, so important messages can spread more widely and quickly. It will be interesting to see how art continues to evolve, react to and shape our turbulent world.

Further discussion with another artist Fenia Sarra (Greece, Photographer | Collage Artist). According to her surrealism is a revolution. It is the subconscious truth of every artist. It is our mind without the fetters of logic, it is pure fantasy without rules.

She added “one of the main elements that show surrealism in my work is retro images and female forms. I believe that image in our century has a significant role in our lives. We see images and pictures everywhere and we have the task to decode them, keep in mind that "the illiterate of the future will be the person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen" as Moholy-Nagy said, so I believe that the art of collage has a bright future.

Words that she associates with surreal are revolution, inspiration, madness, freedom, psychedelic, timeless, unique, confuse.

With her art, she tries to give to her audience optical pleasure and a different way of thinking through surrealism. She reflects that every form of art is beneficial to the human soul.

Her Perception of contemporary society is “I think people nowadays want an easily interpreted complexity. People's lives are orbital to art.”

Kevin Joseph Kaiser (Indianapolis, Indiana, USA) is another Collage Artist with absolutely different projections. Discussing his ideas and logic made me think how creative can one be, actually, there is no limit of creativity.

He got inspired by surrealism when he saw Dali’s paintings. Expressions he used for surrealism were dreamlike or out of the ordinary, Bizarre, Weird, and Unusual. He feels like most of society accepts surrealism impartially well. “Some people will never get it. I think most people still like to see strange art”.

His work majorly focused on Nudity. So after questioning the acceptance by the society, he said “for the most part I get really amazing feedback from all the nudes. Mostly from women, oddly enough. I find that very refreshing. I never really know how anyone is going to take what I’m putting out. I’ve offended a few people. I’ve been told that my nudes are uninspired. That they’re disrespectful to woman. So when women approach me, to tell me they feel empowered, or just really love what I do, I really love that. When anyone says something nice it means a lot to me.”

“I’m not really sure how relevant what I do is. I’ve heard a few people say ‘erotic art is very popular now’ but that’s the last reason for me to ever make a collage. I just do what I want, people can’t sway me from that. If it’s popular cool. If not, I’ll still be over here cutting out naked women.”

“I’m giving a different way to look at the naked body. Some people just see nudity. I see something more. I see a piece of art. A piece that took as much time as any other piece I made. “I think everyone has a different perspective towards art. I think that’s super cool. You never know who will like what or why.”

“Everyone can voice their opinion on art like in a democracy. They’re both parts of life though. So the old ‘life reflects art/art reflects life’ could work there. I suppose if you look for it, the surreal is everywhere. You just have to find it, or make it, for yourself.”

Interviewing another artist Erin Houghtaling (Michigan, United States | Photographer, Collage Artist) - What inspired you collage artworks? She added “I feel the way my memory stores information is quite surreal, rather than literal. When I started making collages, I used my own photographs of my family, our travels, and experiences. I felt the resulting surreal collages better represented my memories and feelings than any one of the original photographs.”

About her work she added “I work in photography and paper collage made with found vintage picture books. I'm inspired by so many things. The vastness of the universe, the female experience in the United States, the power of nature over humans, the feeling of not quite fitting into the places we end up, finding ultimate comfort in solitude.”

“Surrealism to me is anything that can't or doesn't naturally exist, yet humans can still relate and connect with it. Surrealism can also be something that seems too good to be true; too perfect. OR something that you've only imagined or seen a picture of, but then see in person. I guess surrealism lives in the mind.

I think surrealism makes people stop and question their own reality and beliefs. Whether they like it or not. I think that is important to do!”

Getting different perspectives of artists give me exploration and excitement to dig more and more about surrealism. I’m thankful to these artists to give me an overview of what’s going on another side of the world.