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Surrealism is the art movement that closely followed the heels of cubism. This art movement is characterized by surreal images, hence the name surrealism. Art form under the influence of surrealism has been described as dreamlike and highly imaginative with objects that are intended to surprise the viewer. It also has a lot of juxtapositions that are very much unexpected. Despite the fact that some of the artwork and writings under the surrealist movement seem comical in a way, their artists claim that they represent and adhere to certain philosophical beliefs. One of the most notable leaders of the Surrealist movement was artist, writer and activists Andre Breton who has been known to insist on the fact that surrealism was indeed a very revolutionary movement not only in its various art forms but also with the philosophy, psychology and politics that accompanied the movement.

The art movement of surrealism started during the 1920*s, during the start of the World War and around the time when Dadaism and cubism as an abstract movement was waning. It is also during this time that the young artists who populated Paris were forced out from the city because of war. The art form started in Paris and slowly spread to various parts of the globe. The art movement of Surrealism is said to be based on the fact that the artists strove to depict an underlying psychological and philosophical issue in their paintings. This is also the reason why Surrealisms is also linked to the Situationist and Freudian movements.

In 1925, the very first exhibition of Surrealist art was conducted in Paris at Gallerie Pierre. The exhibition included works by famous artists Man Ray, Masson, Klee Miro and much more. This show was important because it solidified the status of Surrealism as a valid form of Visual art.

The Golden Age of the surrealist art movement is said to be during the 1930*s. It was during this time that surrealism truly excelled and the world was privy to undeniable masterpieces like *The Persistence of Memory* by Salvador Dali during 1931 and *L'Ange du Foyeur ou le Triomphe du Surr*alisme* by Max Ernst in 1937. It was also during the 1930's that a surrealist group was founded in Britain. It is also during this time that the artists Dali and Magritte created widely recognizable piece. Included of course are Dali's runny and melting time pieces found in his above mention artwork.

Surrealism has such a great influence on the art world that it didn*t only affect the painted form, but bled out and found its way into films, theater, poetry and others. Surrealist writers were known to reject the idea of organizing their thoughts, but they still managed to paint a mental picture of what they were trying to get across. The first real form of Surrealist writing is said to be Literature entitled *Magic Fields.* Feminist groups were known to criticize the surrealist movement. Feminist groups claimed that the surrealism was generally a masculine form of art despite the fact that there are a number of celebrated female surrealist.

To this day, there are still many artists that dabble as Surrealists and like those who came before them; they too attach a deep intentional and often philosophical meaning to their art.