Surrealism and Rationalism in Art
The Dragon by Oscar Dominguez
Classification of the Work
Oil on canvas painting, 82 x 61 cm.
Composition of the Work
The author presents a symbolic landscape. In this painting, we find the dragon that gives the title to the work fading into the roots of a tree. Resting on the dragon is a dreaming lion. The dragon stands as a ritual totem on a flat surface resembling lava. On a grand piano floats the lion, a fairly common symbol that reinforces the role of the dragon tree. The tree may be associated with dragon heads, which according to mythology, appeared when the dragon died and became a tree, giving rise to the legend.
Thematic Content
This work represents an immense, emblematic dragon. The dragon is the most resounding symbol, and the tree branches could be associated with dragon heads. This painting is one of the artist’s most representative Canary Island works. In it, we find several of his most identifying features, such as the dreamlike quality and symbols like the dragon, which bring us closer to the painter’s world.
Stylistic Language
The work can be ascribed to Surrealism. This movement has literary origins. The new movement inherited not only the continued use of provocation, deeply convinced that reason was but an annoying obstacle, but Surrealism mainly aimed to define issues relating to the subconscious, referring to the world of dreams, and issues related to the dreamlike visions of the mentally challenged. Within Surrealism, there are two forms: a) objective works that imitate the forms of reality and b) anti-objective works that do not reproduce natural forms. Surrealist artists share features such as the rejection of rational logic and concern about the subconscious, dreams, and fantasy. Sometimes, a widely used approach enables the capture of favorite horizons.
Chronological and Stylistic Period
Surrealism is one of the avant-garde movements of the early twentieth century. It includes multiple facets and cultural manifestations, including literature, as practiced by authors such as Paul Eluard.
Function and Possible Significance
The dragon is a descendant of the giant of Orotava. Surrealism is, above all, a way of seeing, and this capacity was lost in the maze of the centuries. André Breton believed that this capacity would only be revealed in dreams and in the dragon tree that had been toppled by a storm half a century before his trip to Tenerife.
Antecedents and Context
In the history of art, the history of Surrealism is found in artists like Blake, Goya, and Bosco, where images arise from the irrational and absurd. The world of Surrealism survives even today in many movements.
Location and Context
Surrealism, as a leading avant-garde movement, sought to explain sociologically the same reality that Freud and psychoanalysis addressed with the unconscious.
Identification of the Work and Author
Oscar Dominguez is the first Canary Island artist to go beyond the scope of local history. Dominguez’s work is extensive and underwent a complex evolution throughout his life. Unlike the painter from Cadaqués, the starting point of conflict is not sexual desire but humor, understood as a driver of human activity. His artistic stage began when he met Picasso during World War II. His work at this stage is marked by patterning and deformation of the human figure, eventually becoming heavily influenced by decalcomania.
Villa Savoye by Le Corbusier
Classification of the Work
Civil architectural work.
Composition of the Work
Description of the elements:
- Classification: We are facing a single-family home located in a park. Its box-shape and white walls contribute to its isolation.
- Building materials: The building is supported by columns. The upper horizontal walls dominate the house, which is covered by a flat roof. The design contrasts straight and curved lines.
- Construction materials: The construction materials are reinforced concrete, iron, and glass. These materials allow for a plastic flow.
- Composition and spatial organization: The building is fragmented and incomplete. Circular shapes contrast with the straight lines. The entrance is not freely exposed; there’s a facade, and the house is open to all sides. It is located on the grass, with the home on the top floor.
The villa contains the five points of architecture:
- Free facade: The use of reinforced concrete allowed freedom in facade design.
- Open plan: Piles remain free and independent of the walls.
- Landscape layout: Oblong windows provide visibility from one side of the house to the other.
- Ground on stilts: The house on stilts frees up the ground floor.
- Roof garden: The flat roof can be used as a garden terrace.
Stylistic Language
The work is ascribed to the Rationalist movement, which developed in the interwar period. Functionalism was born with the idea that architectural form should reflect its function. This rational movement was inspired by Greek and Mediterranean architecture, moving towards an exuberant nudity that sought to associate the modern world with human needs.
Chronological and Stylistic Period
The work was produced between 1929 and 1931. It is a rationalist architectural model considered an artistic movement that renounces aesthetics in favor of functionality. It had a significant influence on the development of modern architecture.
Function and Possible Significance
The house is a place to live, connected to the outer space and landscape. It represents the enthronement of nature and the horizon. Le Corbusier envisioned the house as a machine for living.
Antecedents and Context
The Villa Savoye reminds us of Palladio’s villas with their stilt construction and the Mediterranean base. Functionalist architecture in the first half of the 20th century has a strong historical foundation.
Location and Context
The Villa Savoye was built between 1928 and 1931. Social changes caused by the Industrial Revolution also expressed the urgency of adapting the house to the needs of modern man.
Identification of the Work and Author
The work is the Villa Savoye in Poissy, France. Its author is Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, known as Le Corbusier. He was based in Paris and specialized in designing private houses, apartment buildings, and housing groups. His most well-known works are the Unité d’Habitation in Marseille and the Chapel of Ronchamp.