Surrealism is an art movement that emphasizes irrational, dream-like scenes and subconscious expressions, often using unexpected juxtapositions. Whereas, Impressionism focuses on capturing fleeting moments and the effects of natural light on subjects, aiming to evoke the sensation of a particular time and place.

Surrealism, for instance, often had a darker, more mysterious edge to it, while impressionism tended to be more lighthearted and cheerful. Surrealist artists also often incorporated elements of the unconscious mind into their work, while impressionists generally stuck to depicting the world as it appeared to them.

In summary, Impressionism and Surrealism differ from multiple perspectives. They were inspired by different things and viewed other aspects of art as more important. In particular, while Impressionism focused on the technique, Surrealism was more about the imagery. However, both of them attempted to capture the intangible: feelings or thoughts.

Where Impressionism dealt with realistic everyday scenes painted in a stylized way, Surrealism depicted unnatural scenes painted in a realistic style. The Surrealism movement was the descendant of Dada. Dada was an art movement of the early 20th Century that was heavily grounded in politics.