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André Breton

1896–1966

Exquisite Corpse c.1930
© ADAGP, Paris and DACS 2025, London; © Estate of Paul Eluard

Biography

André Robert Breton (; French: ɑ̃ʁ ʁɔɛʁ ʁəɔ̃; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto (Manifeste du surréalisme) of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism".

Along with his role as leader of the surrealist movement he is the author of celebrated books such as Nadja and L'Amour fou. Those activities, combined with his critical and theoretical work on writing and the plastic arts, made André Breton a major figure in twentieth-century French art and literature.

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Surrealism

Artworks

  • I Saluted at Six Paces Commandant Lefebvre des Noëttes (Poem object)

    André Breton
    1942
  • Exquisite Corpse

    André Breton, Nusch Eluard, Valentine Hugo, Paul Eluard
    c.1930
Artwork
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