Major exhibition of Surrrealism arrives at The Box

23rd May 2025

Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes explores the impact and legacies of one of the twentieth century’s most influential artistic, intellectual and literary movements

A painting by world-famous artist Salvador Dali and a work by internationally renowned sculptor Henry Moore are just two of the many stand-out pieces in a major new exhibition at The Box in Plymouth. Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes celebrates 100 years since Surrealism began and is on display from Saturday 24 May until Sunday 7 September.

Forbidden Territories brings together a variety of surrealist works by both British and international artists working across a range of mediums. Organised by The Hepworth Wakefield, it’s the first UK survey to explore the role of landscape in one of the most influential artistic, intellectual and literary movements of the twentieth century. The exhibition is set to take visitors on a fantastical journey through an array of surrealist landscapes over the summer, showing how this dynamic and far-reaching movement is still inspiring artists today.

Artists on display include Salvador Dalí, Eileen Agar, Lee Miller and Max Ernst, alongside later Surrealists such as Leonora Carrington, Edith Rimmington and Marion Adnams, and contemporary artists working within the legacy of Surrealism like Helen Marten, Nicolas Party, Wael Shawky and Ro Robertson.

Presented in four groupings, Forbidden Territories explores how Surreal ideas can turn landscape into a metaphor for the unconscious, fuse the bodily with the botanical, and provide a way to express political anxieties, gender constraints and freedoms.

In ‘Landscapes of the Mind’ well-known paintings by Max Ernst and Yves Tanguy draw on the artists’ childhood memories of the forests of Bavaria and seashores of Brittany. They are shown alongside a vibrant work by Swiss artist Nicolas Party who is widely known for his large-scale murals made with soft pastels.

‘Contested Terrains’ shows how Surrealism has often responded to times of political upheaval. Many of the early Surrealist artists lived through the trauma of the First World War and a series of works by Salvador Dalí, Gordon Onslow Ford and Merlyn Evans convey political tensions through uncanny landscapes. Work by Egyptian contemporary artist Wael Shawky is presented alongside Lee Miller’s photographs of Egypt taken during the war. Although created at different times, both artists present surreal depictions of the North African landscape with undertones of political and societal tensions.

As well as showcasing some of the most famous artists of the 20^th century, Forbidden Territories also shines a light on some of those who have previously been neglected. These include Mary Wykeham, an under-recognised Surrealist artist who decided to become a nun in 1950, at the height of her career. Written out of the history of the Surrealist movement and art history until recently, she was inquisitive and experimental and used her works to analyse her spiritual beliefs.

‘Biomorphic Natures’ features some amazing 3D works, including hybrid creatures by Leonora Carrington, Henry Moore’s Reclining Figure, 1936 and a series of large white plaster sculptures by Jean Arp which span several decades of the artist’s career and show the shapes and symmetry that were at the heart of his practice.

‘Bodies of Water’, the final section of the exhibition, explores ideas of gender identity and sexuality and brings together new work by contemporary artists María Berrío and St Ives-based Ro Robertson alongside Surrealists such as Eileen Agar, Dora Maar and Ithell Colquhoun. Colquhoun, whose work blended Surrealist technique with an interest in the occult, mysticism and nature, moved to Cornwall in the late 1940s and remained in the region for the rest of her life.

Surrealism in the South West has a rich legacy rooted in mystical landscapes and avant-garde communities. While less recognised than locations such as London or Paris, the region’s unique geography, dramatic coastlines, folklore and heritage have provided fertile ground for the Surrealist imagination. In 1937, some of the most original painters, sculptors, writers and photographers of the time including Max Ernst, Leonora Carrington, Roland Penrose, Lee Miller and Henry Moore gathered at Lambe Creek, near Truro for a month-long holiday. Contemporary artists who have lived and worked in Cornwall and Devon ever since have continued the Surrealist tradition or incorporated elements of it into their work.

Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes is on display at The Box from 24 May until 7 September 2025. A ‘Summer of Surrealism’ programme will run alongside it featuring talks, exhibition tours, family-friendly workshops from late July until the end of August, a ‘Super Saturday’ on 16 August and a display featuring the winners and entries to a children and young people’s art competition inspired by Surrealism and landscape.

Find out more from www.theboxplymouth.com.