The artwork titled “A Stroke of Luck,” created by RenĂ© Magritte in 1948 in Brussels, Belgium, is a prime example of the surrealism art movement. It is a symbolic painting that embodies the enigmatic and thought-provoking nature typical of Magritte’s works.
In the artwork, the viewer is presented with an otherworldly scene that merges the familiar and the fantastical. The central figure appears to be a man whose head has been replaced by that of a pig. This absurd and paradoxical imagery is set against a backdrop of a serene landscape characterized by towering, dark cypress trees and various sculptural elements. The brushwork exhibits a swirling, almost dreamlike quality that enhances the surreal atmosphere. The rich blending of colors and the juxtaposition of the ordinary with the bizarre invite viewers to delve into the deeper, often subconscious meanings that lie beneath the surface of reality as potentiated by the conventions of surrealism.