Surrealism's Origins Explored at Bibliothèque Nationale de France

The Bibliothèque Nationale de France in Paris presents 'L’invention du surréalisme: des Champs magnétiques à Nadja', an exhibition drawn entirely from its own collections. Curated by the BnF team, the show was originally scheduled for 2020 to mark the centenary of André Breton and Philippe Soupault's 'Les Champs magnétiques'. Instead of opening with documents, it features two costumes from the scandalous 1917 ballet by Jean Cocteau for Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, with costumes by Pablo Picasso. André Breton was among the audience at the Théâtre du Châtelet. The exhibition focuses on surrealist poetic creation, its ties to contemporary scientific discoveries, automatic writing, and its relationship with Dada. In 1919, Breton, Louis Aragon, and Soupault founded the journal 'Littérature' to disseminate surrealist ideas. A section on 'Les Champs magnétiques' highlights the influence of psychoanalysis and psychiatry on WWI veterans. The fourth and final section centers on Nadja, Breton's lover, with large-scale portraits and a handwritten quote. Their chance encounter on Paris streets and subsequent 'mad love' led to Breton's book 'Nadja'. The display foreshadows Nadja's tragic death after psychiatric hospitalization, illustrating how surrealist creativity can also bring pain. The exhibition runs until August 15, 2021.