by Zaha Redman
Dorothea Tanning (1910-2012), The Witch, 1950, oil on canvas, 46 x 61 cm/18.1 x 24 in. Courtesy of Gallery Wendi Norris, San Francisco
In the 1930s, Surrealism crossed the Channel, winning over writers, critics and artists alike. While a new war seemed increasingly inevitable, more distant journeys tinged with esotericism and oriental philosophies took place. For instance, Valentine Penrose (1898-1978) left England and Europe to live in an ashram in India. Her poems, short stories and collages were then promoted by Paul Éluard , whom she had met in Paris. The British artist Grace Pailthorpe (1883-1971) turned to science in her search for fresh inspiration. Medical imaging and the psychiatric world, already present in Surrealism during the 1920s, played a specific role in her artistic output. After studying music in London, she branched out into medicine and became a surgeon during the Great War. This was followed by a long journey around the world... read more
