´óÏó´«Ã½

100 years ago, when Andre Breton set out his ideas in the first ‘Surrealist Manifesto’ in 1920s Paris, he promoted Surrealism as a way of questioning conventional reality and the rational world. He wanted to revolutionise human experience - could a better world be made through unlocking the subconscious and harnessing the power of dreams?

It led to a flourishing of writing, painting and sculpture depicting uncanny, illogical and dreamlike scenes. This desire to transform an imperfect world, struck a chord with artists and activists beyond the original Paris Surrealist group - people who were searching for new ways to fight the oppression they encountered, whether sexism or racism, to imagine a freer world.

The women of Surrealism are only now getting the recognition they deserve. So, in this episode, Russell Tovey looks closely at just a few of these incredible artists and activists - Meret Oppenheim, Ithell Calquhoun, Lee Miller, Leonora Carrington and Suzanne Césaire, who took the ideas of Surrealism in new directions.

Why did they find Surrealism so liberating?

With Chloe Aridjis, Louisa Buck, Kate Conley, Carine Harmand, Terri Francis, Katy Hessel, Lisa Mullen, Joanna Moorhead, Anthony Penrose and Alexandra Reza.

Producers: Melissa FitzGerald and Eliane Glaser
Sound Design: Tony Churnside
Readings: Hazel Holder
A Zinc Audio production for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 4

Cover Photo: Martin Creed and Russell Tovey