Surrealism launched in Paris in 1924 – playful, provocative, shocking. It wanted to open up a new kind of reality, and quickly took the world by storm.
In this exhibition, you’ll encounter 180 surrealist works, from paintings and photographs to books, sculpture, and film. This world-class collection from the Netherlands spans the 1910s to 1960s.
Get up close to some of Salvador Dalí’s most important paintings and sculpture. Explore the layers of his masterpiece Impressions of Africa in an immersive digital projection. See his sensuous Mae West Lips Sofa, and watch extracts from his sensational film The Golden Age, which caused a riot at its first screening in 1930s Paris.
Hear the anarchic chaos of the Cabaret Voltaire – where dada, the forerunner to surrealism, first emerged. Step inside a René Magritte painting. Record one of your dreams to add to our archive, inspired by the original Bureau of Surrealist Research.
Surrealist Art audio descriptions
Listen to audio descriptions from the Surrealist Art exhibition
Indemnified by the New Zealand Government.
Activities
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Education resource: Surreal activities teaching resource
Surreal activities teaching resource
This resource is full of activities that will help you to explore surrealism with your students. The activities are playful and sometimes irrational, a bit like surrealism itself.
