Surrealism Artworks as A Stimulus for the Artistic Expression of Students

Marija Brajčić and Dubravka Kuščević
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Split

Abstract

Visual arts are an inexhaustible source of imagination, aesthetics and creativity, and can serve as an incentive for the development of personal creativity. We are able to communicate with works of art if we are trained to understand and aesthetically experience them, so it is important to be in contact with the rich symbolic meanings of the language of art. In order for students to be able to communicate and understand the cultural dynamics of art forms and to successfully communicate with art forms in the future and develop their visual art literacy, art content must be implemented in higher education. Contact with works of art allows students to better understand their thoughts and feelings, and with appropriate methods, a work of art can move students to creativity. The article investigates the influence of surrealist paintings (Rene Magritte and Salvador Dali) as a stimulus for the artistic creativity of 46 first-year students of Early and Preschool Education from the Faculty of Philosophy in Split, Republic of Croatia. The results are presented by a qualitative methodology using a specific method of aesthetic transfer (perception, reception and reaction) that brings the observer of the work of art in aesthetic interaction with the work of art and encourages his experience of the work of art and creativity. Experiencing the works of surrealism in students aroused emotions and aesthetic experience, and students created background stories about what they observed, and also with the help of various freely chosen art techniques designed their own artwork, which influenced the development of students' creativity.

Presentation