Talk: On the Threshold of Liberty - Surrealism and Politics

When | Āhea: Sat 18 Sep 2021, 2.00pm–3.00pm
Where | Ki hea: Te Marae, Level 4

Surrealism was indelibly linked to the idea of revolution. This is evident in the name of the two reviews closely linked to the movement – La Révolution surréaliste and Le Surréalisme au service de la révolution – and its long history of engagement with revolutionary political movements, from the French Communist Party in the 1920s to anticolonial movements of the 1950s.

Although surrealism is now remembered principally as a cultural movement that made considerable contributions to the art and literature of the twentieth century, as an idea and experience surrealism always rejected cultural recognition as secondary. This talk explores the dynamic between politics and culture that animates the history of surrealism.

Dr. Raymond Spiteri teaches art history at Victoria University of Wellington. His research and publications focus on the interface of culture and politics in the history of surrealism.

This event does not include entry to Surrealist Art | He Toi Pohewa