Woman Dreaming

Sam Haile (1909-1948) was a British potter and painter associated with the British Surrealist group and the Artists International Association. The painting is dated to 12 July 1940, suggesting an immediacy typical of the Surrealist technique of automatic drawing. At this time, Haile was working in various jobs and teaching positions in New York, having made the crossing from France like many other Surrealists. In this work, the artist visualises the dreams of a reclining female figure in the foreground. In the dream landscape, Haile depicts a reversal of natural laws where crocodiles fly and birds use parachutes to fall to the ground. This subject, and the technique of automatic drawing in which the artist seeks to suppress conscious thought and draw their unconscious ideas and associations, is characteristic of the Surrealists’ concern with the power of dreams and the unconscious mind. Its depiction of menacing airborne creatures reflects collective fears around aerial warfare at this moment in time. Haile’s work was influenced by his anti-war and anti-imperialist politics.