Self and desire: surrealism in the images and texts of Federico García Lorca, Rafael Alberti, Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington

The fundamental question for Breton, as voiced in the opening pages of Nadja (1928), was one he shared with many poets and painters of his generation, disillusioned by war and seeking a greater truth: ‘Who am I?

This study focuses on four artists who chose to articulate their complex identity questions within a Surrealist aesthetic; poets and painters who had varying degrees of contact with the Surrealist movement, each facing different obstacles and reaping diverse rewards. For Breton, desire was the key to tapping into his creative subconscious. This investigation examines works by Federico García Lorca, Rafael Alberti, Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington, to determine how they used Surrealism in their attempts at selfdefinition and how, if at all, their efforts were mediated by desire.