David Lynch, renowned director, actor, musician and visual artist has passed away at the age of 78. Lynch, who received acclaim for his surrealist, off-beat films and television series, was a defining director of his generation, directing many successful productions such as Mullholand Drive, Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet and Eraserhead.Â
Surrealism, an avant-garde cultural and artistic movement that originated in Europe post World War I, focuses on the strange and illogical, encouraging artists to explore their unconscious intellect through creation. The movement prioritizes expression through artistic creation over general understandability. Lynch was a champion of the surreal and strange, epitomized by his dreamlike and experimental creations. Lynch was widely responsible for the mainstream popularization of surrealist film, fortifying himself as a true visionary of his generation.
Despite Lynch’s undeniable impact on film and visual art alike, surrealism is a dying breed. As our culture leans further into immediacy and profitability, mediation within art is at an all-time low. This lack of mediation leads to an emphasis on instantly gratifying forms of media, favoring surface-level interaction over critical analysis. Our consumerist habits of overconsumption have resulted in constant pressure for more within media—whether it be more films released or more books published. This has led to the prioritization of understandability over artistic merit, presenting artists with a choice: either create profitable, digestible art or create meaningful art that relies on critical engagement.Â
This prioritization of digestibility and profit in media has resulted in the commodification of art. In our capitalist society, no one is exempt from the societal pressures to adhere to the rigid standards of the free market, art included. When art is made for commerciality and not creativity, it becomes something to be bought and sold rather than a conduit for critical engagement. This has resulted in a sense of cultural hegemony within the art world in which art that generates profit is held to a higher standard than art that requires mediation and engagement.Â
Similarly, with the rise of artificial intelligence, surrealist history is actively being made. While many argue the connections and similarities between AI art and surrealism, due to AI art’s tendency to replicate dreamscapes alongside a general sense of disembodiment, AI art is only similar to surrealism in its mistakes. AI art often depicts strange replications of real-life situations, such as a hand with eight fingers or a jumbled mess of letters instead of real words. This is not surrealism. Surrealism, as a movement, relies on the subconscious motivations of the artist, creating intentional manifestations of the indescribable. The human spirit is a necessary ingredient in creating surrealist art; one that artificial intelligence—no matter how effective it becomes—can never replicate.Â
With David Lynch’s death, the world has lost a brilliant artist. Not only have we lost a ground-breaking creative, but we have also lost the most widely popular director of surrealist films. Lynch’s death marks a clear decline in mainstream representation of surrealist art—a loss so devastating that the barriers of language cannot begin to explain it.
However, this is not to say that surrealism has been entirely eradicated with Lynch’s passing. Creativity is at the core of every human being. Just because art has become increasingly commodified does not mean surreal art can no longer exist. As our culture continues to spiral into consumerist-inspired creations, allow art to be an act of resistance. Inspiration is everywhere for those who are looking, or, as Lynch says, “What a great time to be alive if you love the theater of the absurd.”
In loving memory of David Lynch, procurer of the strange and obscure.