Throughout the history of art, there is no other artistic movement where two such different artists as Magritte and Miró coexisted. The reason is that, at its roots, Surrealism is not so much an artistic movement as it is a philosophical concept. It was an all-encompassing way of life and activity—a protest against the establishment that unleashed the horrifyingly bloody First World War.

Without attempting to analyze the works of the Surrealists, the renowned writer and Surrealist artist Desmond Morris focused on the Surrealists as people—remarkable individuals.