Religious Iconography in Dada and Surrealism

Deitrich (2003:24) explains that Crucifixion (1930) by Picasso draw from and included symbolism traditionally seen in Renaissance art to create a self-portrait rather than comment on religion.

One of Surrealism’s purposes was to defy Christianity and replace it with a new valid contemporary religion (Perez, 2003:16)

Deitrich (2003:24) points out that the religious photography the surrealists created was rare and tended to be blasphemous, for example, Georges Hugnet’s Last Supper (1934), where an image of a woman performing fellatio has been superimposed onto it, and Man Ray’s Monument de Sade (1933), where a woman’s bottom is shown within an upside-down cross.

Sources

Dietrich, Teresa (2003) An Investigation into the Use of Religious Iconography in Photography, Stockport College of Further and Higher Education, Department of Design and Visual Arts

Perez, Nissan (2003) Revelation: Representations of Christ in Photography, London: Merrrell Publishers