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The Surrealists
The Surrealists created dreamlike or seemingly insane works of art.

The Surrealists

Surrealist artists explored strange ideas, unexpected combinations, and imaginative scenes. Discover key Surrealist techniques and how meaning can shift, then try the quiz below.

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Fascinating Fact:

Dream imagery was a major influence, with symbols that can feel personal or mysterious. Viewers may interpret the same image in different ways.

In KS3 Art and Design, Surrealism is explored as an approach that breaks normal rules of reality. Artists often use unusual scale, surprising objects, and distorted spaces to create tension, questions, or humour. The aim is not always a realistic scene, but an idea, mood, or message that makes the viewer look twice.

Key Terms

  • Automatism: Making marks quickly and without planning, then developing what appears on the page.
  • Juxtaposition: Placing contrasting images or objects together to create a new meaning or shock effect.
  • Metamorphosis: A visual transformation where one form changes into another within an artwork.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is Surrealism in art for KS3?

Surrealism in KS3 art is a style where artists create unusual, unrealistic images to explore ideas and emotions. It often uses strange combinations and altered spaces to challenge what seems “normal”.

What is automatism in Surrealist art?

Automatism is a method where an artist starts drawing or painting without a strict plan, letting spontaneous marks lead the work. The artist then refines the result to develop shapes, textures, or imagery.

Why do Surrealist artworks look confusing or strange?

Surrealist artworks can look strange because they deliberately break realistic rules, such as scale, perspective, and logical storytelling. This makes the viewer question meaning and notice symbolism or hidden messages.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .
When did Surrealism begin?
The 1940s
The 1850s
The 1980s
The 1920s
Artists painted unnerving, illogical scenes with photographic precision, creating strange and unnerving worlds as they attempted to recreate the subconscious
2 .
A key artist in the movement, Salvador Dali, is best known for his work showing melting clocks in a surreal landscape. What is it called?
The Repetition of Time
The Unwinding of Clocks
The Occurrence of Thought
The Persistence of Memory
The general interpretation of the work is that the soft watches are a rejection of the assumption that time is rigid
3 .
Which aspect of Sigmund Freud's work inspired the Surrealists?
Dream analysis
Word games
Ink blot interpretation
Grief therapy
Freud's work with free association, dream analysis, and the unconscious was of utmost importance to the Surrealists in developing methods to free imagination
4 .
Chirico's famous work, 'Le Mauvais Génie d’un Roi' is translated as what?
The Badness of Royalty
The Wicked Behaviour of a Prince
The Rudeness of the Queen
The Evil Genius of a King
Chirico founded the 'scuola metafisica' art movement, which profoundly influenced the Surrealists
5 .
What happened to Surrealism in the 1930s?
The infighting within the movement caused its collapse
The movement moved back towards a more traditional way of working
Surrealism reached a larger public audience than ever before
Most artists left the movement to pursue other careers
A British Surrealist group emerged in Britain and Surrealist leaders saw this era as the pinnacle of the movement
6 .
When and how was the term 'Surrealism' first used?
In 1927, to describe a painting
In 1903, in the preface to a play
In 1909, as the name of an exhibition
In 1901, as the title of a book
'The Breasts of Tiresias' (Les mamelles de Tirésias) is a surrealist play by Guillaume Apollinaire. He used the term in his preface to the play
7 .
Another key Surrealist, Joan Miró, famously declared what?
A destruction of the establishment
A ruination of the academy
An overthrowing of the rule makers
An assassination of painting
He favoured a completely renegade style, which did not adhere to any conventions of the time
8 .
What key event happened to Surrealism in 1924
The Surrealists looked to the Romantics for inspiration
The Surrealists adopted a more regulated style
The Surrealist movement split into two factions
The Surrealists held a special exhibition
The two leaders of the factions clashed regularly, sometimes physically fighting over their right to be called Surrealists
9 .
Surrealist René Magritte challenged conceptions of reality. What was the subject of his painting entitled 'This is not a pipe'?
A cigarette
A matchstick
An ashtray
A pipe
He wanted people to look at his work and think, 'What does that mean?'
10 .
A huge exhibition of Surrealism was held in Paris in 1938. What were visitors to the exhibition given?
A torch
A raincoat
A pocket watch
A paint brush
The Surrealists wanted to create an exhibition which in itself would be a creative act
Author:  Angela Smith (Primary School Teacher & KS1 Quiz Writer)
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