Two styles led up to Social Realism. These include New Realism and Surrealism. Surrealism express the workings of subconscious and is characterized by fantastic imagery. Surrealism began in the late 1920's with a center in Paris but spread throughout the world. New Realism is a trend away from abstract expressionism but towards subjective expressionism that focuses on true to life forms, the factual, and easily ended forms. Social Realism was also a reaction against Idealism. Idealism is art that reflects what the world should be like. It is of true things but made perfect by the artist.
Social Realism had mixed responses. Some people disliked it and others thought highly of Social Realism and the messages. "The public was outraged by Social Realism, in part, because they didn't know how to look at it or what to do with it." said George Shi, University of Fine Arts, Valencia. While others thought that it brought a good message and showed the truth. "The majority of works embodied . . . a naive form of social realism, inspiring Americans to reflect on their heritage of revolution, hard work and religion in an attempt to bring back prosperity" from Grove Dictionary of Art. Many believed it to be a very nice style of art."Better than any other genre, Social Realism has shown us to ourselves, pushing the boundaries in the effort to put the experiences on the screen." from Richard Armstrong.
Social Realism was important for a couple reasons. First, because it shows our history through artwork. The artwork was made based on what was happening in the world and so we can look at it and see the emotion of the times. It is also important because we can see what life was like for people living in those times. A lot of the artwork shows what was happening for the less fortunate so we can see with our eyes how they lived. The artwork shows their emotion and distress so you can feel like you were their.