Just Above Sunset
Volume 5, Number 10
March 11, 2007

Everyday Surrealism

 The world as seen from Just Above Sunset -

"Notes on how things seem from out here in Hollywood..."

Everyday Surrealism - Santa Monica International Chess Park and Hollywood Calling

Santa Monica International Chess Park

Santa Monica International Chess Park, just off the sand, south of the pier and its amusement park, as seen Monday, August 21, late morning - but for two old men playing in the shade of a palm tree, the place was empty, the pieces caged and only pigeons at all the other tables.

Santa Monica International Chess Park
Santa Monica International Chess Park
Santa Monica International Chess Park
Santa Monica International Chess Park

Hollywood Calling

A complex shot - in the window of a combination souvenir and pawn shop in the 6600 block of Hollywood Boulevard, junk for sale, Wednesday, August 23rd. The street is reflected in the upper right quadrant - jacaranda and the tourist looking at this stuff for sale - the Tweety Bird and Snow White's Castle phones, and the poster of the lighthouse at sunset. It's a bit of looking in from the real world into something else entirely.

The window of a combination souvenir and pawn shop in the 6600 block of Hollywood Boulevard

Phones for sale - and there's something ineffably sad here -

In the window of a combination souvenir and pawn shop in the 6600 block of Hollywood Boulevard

Some boilerplate -

Surrealism is an artistic, cultural and intellectual movement oriented toward the liberation of the mind by emphasizing the critical and imaginative faculties of the "unconscious mind" and the attainment of a dream-like state different from, "more than", and ultimately "truer" than everyday reality: the "sur-real", or "more than real."

"Centuries from now, any art that takes new paths toward a greater emancipation of the mind will be Surrealist." - Andre Breton. Also -"Surrealism is based on the belief in the superior reality of certain forms of previously neglected associations, in the omnipotence of dream, in the disinterested play of thought. It tends to ruin once and for all other psychic mechanisms and to substitute itself for them in solving all the principal problems of life."

For many surrealists, this orientation toward transcending everyday reality toward one that incorporates the imaginative and the unconscious has manifested itself in the intent to bring about personal, cultural, political and social revolution, sometimes conceived or described as a complete transformation of life by freedom, poetry, love, and sexuality. Again in the words of André Breton, generally regarded as the founder of surrealism - "Beauty will be convulsive or not at all."

The word "surreal" is often used colloquially to describe unexpected juxtapositions or use of non-sequiturs in art or dialog, particularly where such juxtapositions are presented as self-consistent.

If you use any of these photos for commercial purposes I assume you'll discuss that with me.

These were shot with a Nikon D70 - using lens (1) AF-S Nikkor 18-70 mm 1:35-4.5G ED, or (2) AF Nikkor 70-300mm telephoto, or after 5 June 2006, (3) AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor, 55-200 mm f/4-5.6G ED. They were modified for web posting using Adobe Photoshop 7.0

The original large-format raw files are available upon request.

[Everyday Surrealism]

Last updated Saturday, March 10, 2007, 10:30 pm Pacific Time

All text and photos, unless otherwise noted, Copyright © 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 - Alan M. Pavlik

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