The Parisian institution is celebrating the centenary of surrealism, born with the publication of André Breton's Manifesto, in a major exhibition that presents 500 works from around the world, bringing together paintings, drawings, films, photographs and literary documents.

Twenty-two years after the exhibition "The Surrealist Revolution," the Centre Pompidou in Paris is exploring this movement from a fresh perspective, revealing its scope far beyond the pioneers still credited, such as Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, Max Ernst, and Paul Éluard. Simply titled "Surrealism," this retrospective, spread across 2,200 square meters, retraces forty-five years of creative effervescence, from 1924 to 1969, broadening its scope globally by presenting artists from various countries, both men and women. In 2023, the exhibition "Surrealism in the Feminine?" at the Musée de Montmartre in Paris already accomplished a significant first step in rehabilitating the movement by showcasing nearly 50 ingenious, independent, and underappreciated female artists from several countries. A movement which was nevertheless the only one "to have so many women among its active members", as Marie Sarré, co-curator of the exhibition and curatorial assistant in the modern collections department of the Centre Pompidou, points out.

MANIFESTO AND AI

As part of the centenary celebrations, the Centre Pompidou is therefore broadening the scope of this artistic and intellectual movement, led by André Breton, which challenged conventions, pushed the boundaries of creative forms, and diversified the media and techniques of expression…
The retrospective, divided into 13 chapters and preceded by an introduction, is designed like a labyrinth, with André Breton's original Surrealist Manifesto at its center, on exceptional loan from the National Library of France (BnF). The innovative element is the reconstruction of this founder's voice through voice cloning, using artificial intelligence. This serves as a guide for visitors to discover and understand this manuscript, which lays the foundation for the true workings of thought.
Throughout the exhibition, and as Didier Ottinger, co-curator and deputy director of the National Museum of Modern Art, explains, the plurality of works is based around "two imperatives" of the movement according to André Breton, quoting Rimbaud and Marx respectively: "to change life" and "to transform the world".

Abundant Visions

In an intricate interplay, all the works explore three major guiding and foundational themes of this movement. First, literary figures, such as Lautréamont, Sade, and especially Lewis Carroll through his Alice in Wonderland, which has often served as a standard-bearer. Then, themes, viewed through the lens of the poetic imagination of dreams, mothers, the forest, the artist-medium, mythological creatures, and the cosmos. And finally, political engagement, through texts on anti-colonialism, the great wars, "Black Surrealism," and modern consumerism.

Combining sculptures, paintings, drawings, films, photographs, and literary documents, the Centre Pompidou offers a truly meta, complex, and comprehensive look at a movement that has spread beyond genres, styles, and approaches, and also beyond Paris, France, and Europe. Among the female artists featured are important works by Ithell Colquhoun, Dora Maar, Dorothea Tanning, and Leonora Carrington. On a global scale, the exhibition includes works by Tatsuo Ikeda (Japan), Helen Lundeberg (United States), Wilhelm Freddie (Denmark), and Rufino Tamayo (Mexico).

The Centre Pompidou adds another layer to this anniversary event by breaking free from its institutional framework, joining forces with other museums in Belgium, Spain, Germany, and the United States. Following a touring model, the exhibition reinterprets the movement according to the cultural and historical contexts of the different countries.

“SURREALISM” POMPIDOU CENTER
PLACE GEORGES-POMPIDOU, PARIS 4TH ARRONDISSEMENT
FROM SEPTEMBER 4, 2024 TO JANUARY 13, 2025
CENTREPOMPIDOU.FR