Lesson 3: Dadaism, Surrealism and

Abstract
Expressionism
In this lesson, you should be able to:
● Identify distinct characteristics of arts from the various art
movements;
● Compare the characteristics of artworks produced in the various art
movements;
● Describe the influence of iconic artists belonging to the various art
movements; and
● Realize the influence of a movement to arts and culture.
 Dadaism
Dadaism is an art movement
created as a protest to the
bourgeois culture. The
members question the society,
the artists and the arts itself.
They manipulate ready-made
objects and transform them
into artworks.
 Dadaism
Dadaist artworks are abstract,
formed by deconstructed images
that challenge the norms and
challenging to understand. They
were irreverent, random and
accidental. The ironies on the
works show the wit and humor of
the artists.
 Dadaism
• Just like its artworks, the meaning and the origin of
the word “Dada” is still uncertain. Initiated by
Emmy Hennings and Hugo Ball in 1916 at their
Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich, the first artists of the
movement aimed to stop the war and express
discontent on the nationalist and bourgeois
traditions.
• Dadaism spread in different countries. Each place
has its own themes and characteristics.
 Dadaism in Germany
• Dadaism in Germany started
in 1917. The themes of the
Dadaist artworks are
political and satirical.
• Commentaries on war,
politics, and government can
be seen in the paintings and
collages.
 Dadaism in Germany
• Artists such as Richard
Huelsenbeck, Max Ernst,
Johannes Theodor Baargeld,
George Grosz, Raoul
Hausmann, Johannes
Baader, and Hannah Höch
pioneered the movement.
• Hans Arp, on the other hand,
made important developments by
creating collages by chance.
 Dadaism clubs in Paris and New York.
• Different exhibits and
performances were
mounted to promote
the art movement.
There were also
publications in journals
and manifestos.
 Dadaism clubs in Paris and New York.
• Artists such as Louis
Aragon, Andre Breton,
Paul Eluard, Tristan
Tzara continued to create
Dadaist artworks. It was
Marcel Duchamp who
pioneered the use of ready-
made objects and refused the
definition of art.
 Dadaism
In the 19th and 20th
centuries, artists started to
defy the conventions in the
art world. They used their
artworks to express their
opinions and beliefs.
MARCEL DUCHAMP’S BICYCLE WHEEL
 Surrealism
Another modern art movement
that challenged the critical
thinking of people was the
Surrealism. Founded by
French André Breton in 1924, it
aimed to liberate the human
thoughts, language, and
experience from Rationalism.
 Abstract Expressionism
 Abstract expressionism is the
term applied to new forms of
abstract art developed by
American painters such as
Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko
and Willem de Kooning in the
1940s and 1950s. It is often
characterised by gestural brush-
strokes or mark-making, and the
impression of spontaneity.
 How is abstract expressionism art made?

 In 1947, Pollock developed a

radical new technique, pouring
and dripping thinned paint onto
raw canvas laid on the ground
(instead of traditional methods of
painting in which pigment is
applied by brush to primed,
stretched canvas positioned on
an easel).
 What are the elements of art in abstract
expressionism?

 This vocabulary is made up of

six basic elements: Line,
Texture, Shape, Form,
Color, and Value. Whether
you do abstract art, non-
objective, or even realistic,
you'll find at least one, if not
more, of these elements at
work.
 Let’s Diffirentiate
Dadaism Surrealism Abstract Expressionism

Emmy Hennings French André Breton Clyfford Still

Hugo Ball Max Ernst Jackson Pollock
Hannah Höch Salvador Dalí Willem de Kooning
Hans Arp Yves Tanguy Barnett Newman
Marcel Duchamp Joan Miró Mark Rothko
 Let’s Diffirentiate
Characteristics of Various Artworks
Dadaism Surrealism Abstract Expressionism

● abstract, formed by ● difficult to categorize ● uses large brushes

deconstructed images and to define spontaneously to
that challenge the ● based on dreams, make gestural marks
norms making them weird, ● some use drip
● irreverent, random, puzzling, and paintings by dancing
accidental mysterious around the canvass
● Ironies on the works ● introduced avant- ● liberates the viewers
show the wit and garde techniques and from the conventions