Surrealism and Same-Sex Desire

Surrealism is one of the most influential artistic and cultural movements of the twentieth century. At the core of surrealism was a claim to emancipate human desire. This was reflected in the prominence given to eroticism as a theme in surrealist art and poetry. While certain aspects of this topic have been well-aired, the issue of same-sex desire has been largely neglected by surrealist scholarship. Despite the intolerance of the surrealist leader, André Breton, a considerable number of gay and lesbian artists and writers were attracted to the surrealist movement. This was particularly the case in England, the USA, Spain, Australia, and other countries where surrealism took root in the 1930s. In these locations, surrealism was viewed as a sympathetic haven by individuals whose sexuality did not conform to a heterosexual norm.

This three year project will investigate aspects of surrealism in France, focussing on the problematic status of same-sex desire for the surrealists, comparing the situation there with case studies of surrealist reception in the US, the UK and Australia. The project methodology will draw upon concepts developed by queer theory which proposes a very different understanding of sexuality from the feminist approaches that have tended to predominate in surrealist studies. Our expectation is that new perspectives on surrealism as a whole will emerge from the project. One consequence may well be to challenge a prevalent view that other countries produced only watered down imitations of a more radical French surrealism.

The project will be conducted by the Centre for Studies of Surrealism and its Legacies, a partnership between the universities of Manchester and Essex, and Tate, building upon the Centre's reputation for innovative research that has given impetus and direction to surrealist studies. David Lomas and Dawn Ades, Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator on the project, are authorities on surrealism. They will be joined by Jonathan Katz, an art historian and leading US scholar in the field of queer studies. A postdoctoral research associate will carry through an independent research project on one of the main areas of the study. One of the objectives will be to stimulate new approaches to the study of British surrealism. A PhD studentship will enable a student to work on outstanding surrealist collections and archives at Tate.

Two international conferences, one in the US and one in the UK, and three more focussed workshops, will foster dialogue between scholars. Integrating the different disciplinary perspectives of art historians, literary specialists, queer theorists and historians of homosexuality is essential for a comprehensive grasp of this subject. The project will result in individual monographs and joint edited publications. The centre's online journal, 'Papers of Surrealism', will publish interviews, translations and articles arising from our academic events. An exhibition co-curated by Ades and Lomas will investigate the narcissus theme in surrealist art, photography and film. The exhibition will bring together for the first time documents and preparatory studies relating to Salvador Dali's 'Metamorphosis of Narcissus' (1937), a major work in Tate's collection. The narcissus myth provocatively links homoeroticism with core surrealist preoccupations with desire, identity and the image.

The exhibition and catalogue will be a key to our dissemination plans. A web page dedicated to the project on the Centre's web site will publish research updates and a compilation of archives and resources in the subject area. An edited volume on surrealism and same-sex sexuality will be both a summation of current research and an indispensable reference for future academic work in the field.