Sureal Jewelry Art of Méret Oppenheim and Salvador Dali Jewelry Being Representations of Fetish Objects

Abstract

In the 20th century, developments in the style of jewelry art were marked, among others, by the emergence of surrealism. The two vanguards who could be held responsible for such a movement were Méret Oppenheim and Salvador Dali. Surrealism, as a movement in art and literature was heavily influenced by Sigmund Freud's study of the unconscious. In the views of its founder, André Breton, it must contain dream analysis, free association, and an attempt to liberate the imagination. Additionally, fetishism is a term that refers to the assumption that all objects made by humans are imbued with more force than just their inherent functions. In an essay entitled Fetishism by Sigmund Freud in 1927, fetishism is associated to the realm of the subconscious which contains sexual instincts. This qualitative research which employs visual analysis examines jewelries, which are named Sugar Ring and Fur Bracelet created by Oppenheim, as well as Ruby Lips with Teeth Like Pearls, and The Royal Heart created by Dali, based on their association to elements of surrealism and fetishism as described in Breton’s views published in an article written by Malt (2004). The results of this study indicate that the four works contain elements of surrealism and fetishism since they fulfill the elements of juxtaposition, the presence of hair-like objects, the presence of images of incomplete body organ as manifestations of a castration experience, and magical or non-representational impressions.