Surrealism in Photography: Newton, Bourdin, and Cartier-Bresson

Introduction

Photography has been accorded a significant place in art theory and history, particularly with respect to the twentieth-century development of the avant-garde. One of the major factors that has 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 began to transform their work from illustrations of the real world into something unreal and bizarre. Throughout the history of photography, surrealist photographers have developed concepts and bodies of work that seek to transmit the world beyond the real into a bizarre and unusual one.

Helmut Newton, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Guy Bourdin encapsulated the changes taking place in photography during the middle of the twentieth century. The surrealist photographers of this era coincided historically, even if they did not work together. Despite their distinctive styles, these three photographers unintentionally transformed commercial photography through surrealism. They transcended the conventional photographic norms of the time because of their unique ways of manipulating the medium and presenting images on film. Film was no longer about verisimilitude but about evoking feelings. The surrealist approaches of Newton, Bresson, and Bourdin enlarged the public's sense of what photography could do.

Surrealism in Photography

Starting as a major movement in painting, surrealism became important to the development and growth of photography. Surrealism in photography was characterized by attempts by photographers to go far beyond realism, as they "saw the forces of reason blocking the access routes to the imagination."¹ In essence, surrealism in photography entailed the creation of works and illustrations that sought to unfurl the real world into something unreal and bizarre. Consequently, surrealist photography could be considered contrary to the early forms of photography that simply captured what the human eye might see. Instead of capturing a blunt reality, the surrealists were interested in "moments of psychic intensity in provocative forms of unrestrained, convulsive beauty."²

Surrealism took center stage in photography in the post-war 1950s, starting with Man Ray, but reached a commercial peak in fashion photography. The gradual change in the function and form of photography coincided with shifts in gender norms during the sexual revolution and countercultural movements of the 1960s. Photographers also capitalized on the use of color to create mood and excitement in fashion photography by the 1960s and 1970s. The transformation of fashion photography through the adoption of surrealism was reflected in the styles and works of various photographers such as Helmut Newton and Guy Bourdin. Henri Cartier-Bresson's street photography was not as fashion-forward but contributed much to the settings of avant-garde fashion photography. Because of Newton, Bourdin, and Cartier-Bresson, the culture and tradition of surrealist photography not only took 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 commercial photography. Through their unique ways of manipulating the medium, these three photographers interjected a new aesthetic language into commercial photography. Newton and Bourdin's work changed the meaning and function of fashion photography, elevating this previously utilitarian work into an art form. Helmut Newton utilized a sexually provocative style, determined to push the limits of social norms as far as they could go. Guy Bourdin also utilized provocative imagery but in a different way, fusing violence, sex, and innocence in provocative and surrealistic combinations. Henri Cartier-Bresson's work was less about provocation and more about artful composition, lighting, and timing.

Helmut Newton

Unlike the photographers of his time, Newton's style was provocative and bold. Newton was a German "high fashion photographer whose subversive approach to subject matter and form brought an edge to his editorial spreads."³ In this way, Newton became embedded in the mainstream world of fashion photography. The influences of his work are still in evidence today. Newton used taboo subjects in provocative ways — something that would have been unusual in the 1960s and 1970s, when he worked. Interested in presenting sexuality in new ways and fusing sex with fashion, Newton's work also carries a strong surrealist edge.

For example, in one well-known image, a woman flexes 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 sexual power. Along with the rope, the gloves evoke bondage and fetishism. It is a surreal image in that it upsets traditional depictions of women as tender, soft, and subservient. She appears like a Greek god or a figure of masculine power, yet she is fully female — neither androgynous nor asexual — and she is reclaiming her power as a woman, refusing to allow the male gaze to alter her self-image or the audience's perception of her. Male and female are thus juxtaposed in surreal ways; Newton makes a strong statement about gender roles, norms, and power.

Surrealism and sexuality are used together in most of Newton's imagery. In another image, Newton uses a mirror to achieve a surrealistic effect. The viewer cannot determine whether the form reflected in the mirror is a reflection or a separate framed photograph. The nude whose back is to the viewer becomes the voyeur. Newton essentially transposes the male gaze onto a female figure, who is now in control of how she is depicted and how her sexuality is framed. There appears also to be an embracing couple in the background, observed by the woman. The many layers of sexuality, gender, and voyeurism here are hallmarks of Newton's provocative surrealistic style. Similarly, in another image a woman dangles a phallic symbol — a cigarette — from her lip. Surrealists drew heavily from psychoanalytic theories of the mind and the subconscious, the repository of dreams, desires, and sexual urges. This image invokes the concept of the oral fixation.

In a further image, a nude female stands with her back to the viewer at the edge of a swimming pool — a symbol of the unconscious mind. A director's chair is placed to her right, facing the viewer. It is incongruous and out of place, yet it symbolizes female empowerment: the female as director. As with other Newton images, the female takes control of the scene, and the male gaze is consciously removed.

Newton's work reflected surrealism through portraying the underlying tensions surrounding the myths, images, and fantasies of sexuality. His signature style was a unique combination of sex and theater. He often took explicit photographs that challenged existing beliefs regarding sexuality, and as a result he was accused of being regressive and exploitative due to the eroticization of women. Nevertheless, Newton's determination to push the limits on the issue of sexuality is evident in nearly all of his work in fashion photography. For example, his work for American Vogue's "Story of Ohh" depicted open, forceful lust. Newton's style and work reflected surrealism through explicitly sexualized images of nude and semi-nude women that shocked the viewer and opened a window onto an unusual world.

Conclusion

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 one. Surrealism in photography can be traced back to the 1920s, when artists introduced concepts that challenged people's views on photography. The mid-century works of Newton, Bourdin, and Cartier-Bresson became a realization of surrealism in photography, which impacted practical applications of the medium, most notably fashion. Fashion photography was liberated from its materialism and determinism. Likewise, Cartier-Bresson reflected surrealism through his emphasis on "the decisive moment," which raised everyday events to monumental levels — a technique still used in fashion photography today, aimed at capturing the model in a spontaneous instant rather than a preconceived pose.

In what is inherently an act of voyeurism, the fashion photograph could become 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 into the tradition of surrealist photography. Together, these three photographers ensured that surrealism's transformative influence on the photographic medium would endure well beyond their own careers.