Dada and Surrealism: (Shih Yung Ni) talks on (Jean Miro)'s (Spanish Dancer}, {1945.

Danseuse espagnole

(Spanish Dancer)

1945

Joan Miró

Danseuse espagnole

(Spanish Dancer)

1945

Joan Miró

The Spanish Dancer painted by Joan Miró was categorized as a Surrealist painting. The dimensions of it is 1.46 X 1.14m and it was made in 1945. The piece’s present location is in the collection Beyeler of Basle. The medium of this piece is oil on canvas.

Brief History of Surrealist:

Surrealism was influenced greatly by the Dada movement that appeared before World War I  and aimed to produce works that against art. However, Surrealism’s emphasis was not on negation about destructing art only, but on positive expression. According to Andre Breton’s First Surrealist Manifesto, "Psychic automatism in its pure state, by which one proposes to express — verbally, by means of the written word, or in any other manner — the actual functioning of thought. Dictated by the thought, in the absence of any control exercised by reason, exempt from any aesthetic or moral concern."

How the work fits into a broader style:

The painting is categorized as Surrealist painting due to three reasons. The first reason is that this painting depicts the movement of the Spanish Dancer in a very abstract way by using different forms of simple lines, curves and colors. The painting could not be recognized as a dancer by the first sight of most people as it is not depicted in a clear way. The dancer is represented by some simple geometric figures like circles and triangles with few kinds of color such as blue, yellow, white, black and yellow. The dancer depicted can be described as the imagination of the artist. It was about the impression of the dancer to the artist.

The second reason that this painting is Surrealist is that it emphasis on the mysterious and irrational in order to make the art work ambiguous and strange. 

As Surrealism was influenced by Dada’s use of chance, absurdity and association. Therefore, Surrealist painting also resemble some Dada’s characteristics. For example, the artwork is illogical to against art. For example, in Spanish Dancer, the leg of the dancer is placed just next to the head and there are more than two eyes for the dancer. It is illogical.

The third reason that this painting is Surrealist is that explores the dreams as a valid form of reality. Inspired by Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic technique of free association, Surrealist artworks are acting as means of exploring the imagination and entering the world of fantasy, fear and dream. The book “Art  Across Time” (Vol. II) mentioned that “The exuberance of Miró’s dancing figure and illusion of speed created by curved lines and shifting planes reflect his interest in Surrealist “automatic writing”. Automatism is thus a fundamental element of Surrealism. It enables creativity to draw on the deepest strata of the unconscious and exploring dreams while avoiding rational thought as much as possible. Automatic writing excluds suspends reason, taste, and will from the creative process in order to express the inner vision.

Analysis

Spanish Dancer depicts the dancing moves in a creative way. By using different lines, curves, geometric figures and colors, the dancer is depicted in as a lively images but not only the stuffy image of dancer like photos. For example, the thin curved lines extends to the left of the painting depicts the leg of the dancer. It show the energetic kick of the dance. Under the leg, there are three repeated hook-shaped figures. The repeated pattern of the figures help to show the motion of the dance moves. It maybe the hits of the stop action. At the upper part of the painting, there is a face with two half-circled eyes extended from a ‘nose’. Eyes composed by circles appear at the upper part of the painting and the bottom left corner. Apart from the lines, the artist also depicts the dancer by using colored-figures. For example, the Vase-shaped figure in black and red is depicting the body of the dancer. The use of red and black color symbolizes the characteristic colors of Spanish. The “infinity-shaped’ figures id like the breast of the dancer. In addition, there is a still black rectangle on the bottom part.

The painting seems to be lively actions due to the use of the lines and both ‘colored’ and “non-colors” figures. For example, for the black rectangle, it should be depicted as the floor thus it is colored with blank color to create the feeling on heavy and still. As dancer dance on the follow, she never flied to the sky. As dancer could never fly in the air. The body keeps contacts to show the relationship. On the other hand, the head, face, hands and heads are depicted by using thin lines. The purpose is that to create a lighter and mobilized image of these parts of body when dancing. It is because when the dancer dance, the head, hands and legs keep moving around the theatre. These thin lines and curves help to express the felling of fast and agility movements of dancers.

The use of color also brings us a feeling of unrealistic. For example, eyes could not be red and blue in the eyes thus as a result, the use of color creates dream-liked images. This way of color using could also give surprise to the audience. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, ‘Using Freudian methods of free association, their poetry and prose drew upon the private world of the mind, traditionally restricted by reason and societal limitations, to produce surprising, unexpected imagery. The cerebral and irrational tenets of Surrealism find their ancestry in the clever and whimsical disregard for tradition fostered by Dadaism a decade earlier.’

My Opinion:

This painting drew my attention because I am interested in dancing and I would like to know how Miró depicted the moves of Dance in a more creative way. This painting shocks me as I have never thought that the combination of lines, curves and geometric figures and linked to create a lively image. This brought me a question that “Is art necessary to be aesthetic in extreme?” For me, although aesthetic art helps to maintain the quality of art as not everyone can understand, it may be more valuable, I think realistic art seems to be closer to the public. It is because it requires relatively lower techniques and focus on the expression of the idea or emotion. Thus the ‘dream-liked’ image of this painting created abstract images that leaves the audiences with space of imagination.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the artwork, Spanish Dancer was categorized under Surrealism due to its abstract painting style, ambiguities and illogical and it’s exploration to dream and the style of automatic writing. The features are done by using simple lines, curves, irregular figures, simple colors. The use of thin lines give the painting mobility as lines seems to be lighter than coloring while the use of coloring give us the feeling of still and heavy thus to show the feeling of the ground that the dancer stand on. Overall speaking, the combination of the simple painting elements give the surprise that they create lively image of the speed and rhythm of the dance move of the dancer in the form of the imagination of the artist. This painting raise the question, ‘Is art necessarily to be aesthetic in extreme?’ It is a controversial question but Surrealistic painting shows the creativity of art and focus on the expression of the artist which for me, it serves the function of art.

References:

1.      Andre Breton, First Surrealist Manifesto (Le Manifeste du Surréalisme), 1924

2.      the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, Surrealism
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/surr/hd_surr.htm

3.      Adams, Laurie Schneider. Art Across Time. Vol II. 2nd edition. Boston: McGraw Hill College, 2002

4.      Shpilman Institute for Photography, Encounter With A Photograph: André Breton's Automatic Writing
http://www.thesip.org/language/en/sshpilmanbreton-en/