Dali, O'Keefe and Illusions

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer develops the theory that Dali and O'Keefe manipulated illusion of the real world in such a way to evoke visionary incoherence of the dream life. Under this theory, the writer presents several works by each artist and analyzes these pieces to further illustrate surrealism and its use of expressing real events in a fantastical manner. The writer discusses that in the forms of every day objects in unfamiliar surroundings or placed in those surroundings in a less than familiar way, these artists give illusion in the real world and present this vision as a dream. The writer concludes that the artworks become manipulated not only through the artists' use of space but through the viewer's interpretation of these objects and their strategic placement in the work.

Outline:
Salvador Dali
O'Keefe
Conclusion

From the Paper:

" In Dali's oil on canvas The Persistence of Memory (1913) the theme of paranoia is persistent in this dreamscape. The distortion of the piece exudes a frightening use of spatial mobility and form. Surrealism is a way in which the expression of fantasy can be forthcoming in the world of Art. Dali exemplifies this notion in his use of foreground and background shapes and the pure psychic automatism which is symbolized in the clocks. Dali's focus in this work is mainly about freedom; although the context of this work is based on paranoia and the weightiness of time the work is also free from previous constraints of other artistic movements in that it is not a painting dedicated to reason or moral purpose."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Janson, H.W. & Anthony F. Janson. History of Art. Fifth Edition Revised. Prentice Hall, Inc., and Harry Abrams, Inc., Publishers. New York. 1997.

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