Surrealism: An Alternative Approach: Veristic Attitudes in the Work and Writings of Contemporary Surrealists

When considering Surrealism, art historians, critics, educators and aestheticians have, since the 1940s, focused attention chiefly upon automatism, to the exclusion of veristic trends. However, a remarkable number of artists have remained intensely committed to the veristic. Their written philosophies form a foundation for others to build upon in evaluating the movement. It is suggested that perhaps only through the words of contemporary veristic surrealists can a renewed appreciation of their work be realized and that in these artist-generated writings a rich and viable literature of aesthetics survives a period of misunderstanding.