Auction introduction: A short month after the landmark collection sale of legendary patron and aesthete Pauline Karpidas, Sotheby’s Paris brings its fourth instalment of Surrealism and Its Legacy, celebrating the audacity of a movement that transformed the history of art. From its beginnings in the aftermath of the First World War, Surrealism sought not to embellish reality, but to expose its hidden layers, turn contradictions into poetry, reveal beauty in chaos and reimagine the possible. Charting how the movement’s radical spirit ignited new paths of creation and influenced generations of artists across disciplines and borders, this landmark sale gathers seminal works by the movement’s leading figures and their heirs. Masterpieces by Magritte, Picabia, Dominguez and their fellow pioneers are joined by works that bear witness to Surrealism’s lasting resonance in the post-war and contemporary worlds. Together, they form a constellation of artistic vision that continues to expand a century after Breton’s first manifesto.