Rene Magritte - Man of Many Hats

1.      What is surrealism? Painting in many different styles, used based off of strange things that would happen in their dreams. 

2.      What motif did Magritte use in many of his works? Why was this significant? He used a man wearing a bowler hat in 21 pieces of his artworks. It was significant because he seemed to base his artwork on this man for a good bit of his pieces. 

3.      In his work Golconda, why is it important that Magritte varied the image of the man in the bowler hat?  How does it add depth to the work? he uses a lot of repetition and always includes the hat, as said, "Layered in the varied scale" he paints very realistically and likes to always include many specific details. 

4.      Why did surreal artists choose to create strange worlds with their art? All Artists want to be known for doing specific things so people can identify them as being that artist so that its well known. 

5.      Explain how the techniques of juxtaposition, altered scale, and language help Magritte explore Surrealism. Juxtaposition- unrelated objects, placing them side by side. These images seem both real and unreal, which makes it into being surreal. Altered scale- Makes and affect on how the background and foreground have an impact on the artwork which makes it seem closer to the viewer. 

6.      What would be a few reasons why Magritte would cover the faces of his subjects? "If our dreaming minds can create strange worlds, perhaps artists should try to do the same in waking life"

7.      Why did Magritte strive for realism & precision in his paintings? To show that there is hidden meanings in all paintings. 

Two Examples-