Photography has been accorded a significant place in art theory and history, particularly with respect to the t h Century development of the avant-garde. One of the major factors that have played a crucial role in the history and development of photography is surrealism. Surrealism in photography has come a long way since the 1920s when photographers started to transform their work from illustrations of the real world to something unreal and bizarre. In the history of photography, surreal photographers have developed concepts and pieces of work that seek to transmit the world beyond the real into a bizarre and unusual one. The 60s were marked by Helmut Newton, Henri Cartier Bresson and Guy Bourdin. The surrealist photographers of this time coincided historically and despite their peculiar style three of them unintentionally transformed photography through surrealism. They transcended the conventional photography of the time because of their unique ways of manipulating the medium. Thus their individual approach enlarged the public sense on what photography can do. How is their work a realization of surrealism in photography?

One of the major elements in the development and growth of photography is surrealism. Surrealism in photography was characterized by attempts by photographers to influence on the notions of reality. In essence, surrealism in photography entailed the creation of pieces of work and illustrations that sought to transform the real world into something unreal and bizarre. Consequently, surreal photography was hostile to the early forms of photography that were practiced during the early years of its introduction. For many photographers, surrealism provided a significant avenue for transformation of their work and challenging existing norms and viewpoints.

Surrealism took center stage in photography in the post-war 1950s, particularly in fashion photography. The gradual change contributed to the gender equality and use of color to create mood and excitement in fashion photography by the 1960s and 1970s. The transformation of fashion photography through adoption of surrealism was reflected in the styles and works of various photographers such as Helmut Newton and Guy Bourdin. Since then, the culture and tradition of surrealist photography has not only taken root and flourished, but also significantly influenced contemporary photography.

Helmut Newton, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Guy Bourdin are photographers who played a crucial role in the adoption of surrealism in the field of photography. They utilized peculiar styles for their work and coincided historically to unintentionally transform photography through surrealism and are regarded as the godfathers of fashion photography. Through their unique ways of manipulating the medium, these three photographers transcended the then photography in a manner that enlarged public perception and views of photography and what it can do. Newton, and Bourdins work reflected surrealism in photography based on the styles they utilized by transforming the meaning and function of fashion photography, even of them elevating this previously utilitarian work into an art form. Helmut Newton utilized brutal realism style for his fashion photography since he was determined to push the limits of sexuality as far as it could go. Guy Bourdin also utilized imagery but in a different way, fusing violence, sex, and innocence in provocative and surrealistic ways.

Unlike the photographers of his time, Newtons style was provocative and dangerous. Newton was a German high fashion photographer whose subversive approach to subject matter and form brought an edge to his editorial spreads. Thus embedded into the mainstream world of philosophies of fashion photography. The influences of Helmut Newtons work in fashion photography are still in evidence today. Newton used taboo subjects in provocative ways, something that would have been?Queer in the 1960s and 1970s, when he worked. Interested in presenting sexuality in new ways, fusing sex and fashion, Newtons work also has a surrealist edge. For example, in the image in the bottom left, there is a woman flexing her bicep in a classically male pose. Her breasts are bare, with rope wrapped tightly around and across her torso. She wears long black gloves, signifying her sexual power. Along with the rope, the gloves represent sexual power via the use of bondage and fetish. It is a surreal image in that it upsets traditional imagery of women depicted as tender, soft, and subservient. Likewise, she appears like a Greek god or a male superpower, and yet she is fully female. She is not androgynous or asexual in the least, but she is taking back her power as a woman and refuses to allow the male gaze to alter her self-image or how the audience will view her. Thus, male and female are juxtaposed in surreal ways; Newton makes a strong statement about gender roles, norms, and power.

Surrealism and sexuality are used together in most of Newtons imagery. In the image to the upper right, Newton uses mirror to achieve surrealistic effect. The viewer does not know whether the form in the mirror is a reflection or if it is another photograph, framed. The nude whose back is toward the viewer becomes the voyeur. Newton essentially transposes the male gaze onto a female, and now she is in control of how she is depicted, as well as how her sexuality is framed in the image in the background....…is stuck in space and time.

He reflected surrealism in photography through creating well-composed images that elevated ordinary, daily events to monumental levels. For example, in Place de l'Europe , he took an image of a man jubilantly hopping over a flooded place in Paris. This image raises daily events to monumental levels because it captures the moment before the persons heel hits the architecture, a style that continues to captivate viewers today. Even when the work of Cartier-Bresson was seemingly realist, the imagery nevertheless does contain almost a level of abstraction. Upon this level of abstraction, the viewer is invited to project his or her own thoughts and feelings upon the image. It is important to look beyond the substantive content and appreciate the shapes, forms, and lighting of each image. Even when looking at the decisive moment, one is called upon to question what makes that moment special and unique. Cartier-Bresson was able to locate the surreal squarely within the real, without the need for constructed sexuality or violence. Thus, one finds surrealism in ordinary, everyday imagery.

In conclusion, photography is a field that has continued to develop over the years and affected by various influences. One of the major influences that has affected the growth and development of photography is surrealism, which focuses on transforming the real world into an unusual world. Surrealism in photography can be traced back to the 1920s when photographers introduced concepts that challenged peoples views on photography. The works of Newton, Bourdin and Cartier-Bresson was a realization of surrealism in photography since they were provocative and challenged peoples views on various issues like fashion. Fashion photography was liberated from its materialism and its determinism. In what is inherently an act of voyeurism, the fashion photograph could now be self-conscious in the hands of artists like Newton and Bourdin. Cartier-Bresson added the all-important dimension of place and setting, interjecting abstraction, angles, and chiaroscuro. Likewise, Chartier-Bresson reflected surrealism in photography through his emphasis on the decisive moment, which raised everyday events to monumental levelsa technique that is still used in fashion photography that aims to capture the model in a decisive moment rather than a preconceived pose. Newton and Bourdin reflected surrealism in photography through utilizing brutal realism to ingeniously take creative nude photographs…