Lambert here: Seems appropriate….
Written by Mark Robert Rank, Professor of Social Work and Arts and Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Reprinted from Alternative.
A century ago, the French writer and poet Andre Breton wrote:Surrealism Manifesto” started an art movement known for creating strange hybrids of words and images.
These juxtapositions, often created by chance, were thought to stimulate the unconscious and foster new insights.
Man Ray’s mysterious photographs out of focus collage or Salvador Dali’s disgusting paintings melting clock and elongated elephant It was a typical shape.
As detailed in my book,random element”, much of life is influenced by randomness, from natural evolution to the choice of friends and mates. The Surrealists also made randomness the basis of their artistic practice.
manifestation of wonder
In 1928 the artist Otto UmbertKnown simply as Umbo, he took random photographs of the streetscape below from his window.
The power of images – “mystery of the street” – comes from its direction, not its content. When Ambo developed the photo, he decided to reverse it. The result is images of ordinary people, but whose elongated shadows take on a surprising life of their own.
As a contemporary photographer Sandrine Hermann Grisel writes:“Surrealists question the documentary value of photography. They recognize its ability to capture the manifestation of wonderful events that can occur at random.”
Surrealist painter Max Ernst said,decal comic mania”, a layer of paint is applied to a surface such as glass, and the wet paint is transferred directly to the canvas. Some of the paint will stick, some will not. No problem. Ernst created his paintings by constructing random patterns and textures.
Max Ernst’s 1940 painting “Lonely Tree and Couple Tree” uses the technique of decalcomania. Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum
one out of many
Another surrealist practice involving randomness became known as “.”detailed corpse”
An early version of the collaborative exercise involved getting a small group of friends together and splitting sentences into different parts of speech, such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Each part of the sentence is assigned to one person. The first person writes down the words for their part of the sentence, folds the paper, and passes it to the next person. The second person then chooses the words without knowing what the first person wrote down and passes the developing sentence to the next person.
In this way, sentences are written as they move around the room, with no one knowing what they are until they are completed and someone unfolds the paper.
This process produces writing that people wouldn’t have thought of on their own. According to legendthe first sentence constructed by Andre Breton and his fellow Surrealists read, “Great corpses will drink new wine.”
Man Ray’s photo of a group of surrealists having a conversation. Andre Breton is seated on the far left. Photo 12/UIG (from Getty Images)
Random by design
The principles of the elaborate carcass are also applied to other creative enterprises.
of blackwing 602Manufactured by the Eberhard Faber Pencil Company, this pencil is one of the most iconic pencils of the 20th century. With the tagline “Half the pressure, double the speed,” the product became known for its high-quality graphite and its unique rectangular eraser.
Blackwing was a favorite of many writers and artists, including John Steinbeck, Leonard Bernstein, and animator Chuck Jones of “Looney Tunes” fame. However, Eberhard discontinued Blackwing pencils in the 1990s.
Fast forward to 2010. California Cedar Products Company reintroduces the Blackwing 602. In March 2018, the company designed a limited edition Blackwing pencil to commemorate the surrealists by putting elaborate corpses into fashion. new pencil.
They divided the pencil parts into five sections: the graphite, the barrel, the stamp, the muzzle, and the eraser. The first person on the design team selected graphite. The second person designed the barrel, etc., without knowing the first person’s choices.
The result is my favorite, stunning pencil that would never have existed without my willingness to succumb to randomization.
This pencil has a rose-colored barrel with teal markings, a silver muzzle, a blue eraser, and extremely hard graphite. the company called it that Blackwinged Overlord Volume 54 In honor of 54 Rue Château in Paris, the address of the house where that first exquisite cadaver exercise took place.
leap of faith
Musicians, filmmakers, and graphic designers also incorporate randomness into their work. composer john cage Randomness and chance are often used in his work. In one piece, the pianist sits quietly. 4 minutes 33 secondsthe audience will experience random coughs and rustling sounds in the room.
His “fantasy landscape” series, random elements generated by electricity are part of the performance. For example, during one performance, Cage had 12 radios on stage, each tuned to a different station and playing at the same time. To explain this process: Cage wrote“Opportunity is precisely a leap, offering a leap beyond one’s own grasp.”
As museums around the world celebrate As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of Surrealism, it’s important to recognize that embracing randomness allowed artists to think outside the box. The use of chance as a tool for creativity continues to this day, offering a helping and surprising hand that takes artists and audiences to previously unknown places.
