Eclectix was lucky enough to have timed our visit to Vancouver with the surrealism exhibition "The Colour of My Dreams" at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Not sure whether this show will travel elsewhere, but if it does, it is a must-see for all surrealism fans.
There were quite a few pieces we had already seen in person but surprisingly - a huge amount we had not seen! There were sculptures, paintings, writings, photography and movies - covering all the bases of surrealism. They had a nice side room dedicated to erotic surrealist's works as well. A large, well done hardcover book published for the exhibit is available for purchase here.
From the gallery notes; the exhibit -
"features 350 works by leading Surrealist artists, including André Breton, Salvador DalÃ, Max Ernst, René Magritte, Joan Miró, Alberto Giacometti, Leonora Carrington, Brassaï, André Masson, Man Ray, Edith Rimmington, Wifredo Lam and many others.
André Breton wrote the first Manifesto of Surrealism in 1924, launching a movement which continues to exert a powerful influence. Inspired by Sigmund Freud’s own investigations, Breton was fascinated by dreams and set out to create an artistic process which would tap directly into the unconscious mind and dreams freeing artists from what he saw as “false rationality.”
The installation of the exhibition is designed to create a variety of environments and moods in which to contemplate the themes that the Surrealists explored over a period of three decades such as desire, androgyny, violence and transmutation. The exhibition also highlights the many techniques developed by Surrealist artists including automatism, frottage, fumage, Rayographs and ‘the surrealist object,’ an approach to sculpture in which several unrelated components—most often found objects—were joined together."
The Vancouver "art gallery" is really a museum along the lines of all the grand old buildings of Roman architecture. It has an added-on area for a garden cafe on the upper level which has a 1970's look to it. The food was so-so and over priced, surprising because most meals to be had at museum cafes are pretty darn good. Outside on the street was a "taco truck" and from the looks of the line and the smell emanating from the fresh fish tacos, that may be a better choice for lunch.
