Synopses & Reviews
and#8220;Each morning when I awake, I experience again a supreme pleasureand#8212;that of being Salvador Daland#237;.and#8221;He was a force unto himself, an icon of outrageousness, artistic brilliance, eccentricity, and unmistakable style. Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Daland#237; y Domand#232;nech, Marquis of Pubol, was one of the foremost artists of the twentieth century, and in this concise narrative acclaimed art historian Mary Ann Caws provides a sharply written survey of his life and work.Salvador Daland#237; examines every twist and turn in Daland#237;and#8217;s long and multifaceted career and the pivotal artistic movements at whose center he stood. From his early life in the Catalan region and his expulsions from the School of Fine Arts in Madrid and other schools to the surrealist movement and his work with Buand#241;uel on the films Un chein andalou and Land#8217;and#194;ge dand#8217;or, Caws charts Daland#237;and#8217;s influences and creative process. Daland#237;and#8217;s turbulent personal life brought him in contact with a rich assortment of intellectual figures, and Caws considers his relationships with his family; his lovers, including the married Elena Diakonova; and with friends such as poet Federico Garcia Lorca. His writings, drawings, photography, and painted works offer up new clues about the artist under Cawsand#8217;s incisive eye, as she analyzes his lesser-known writings and creative works, as well as his Surrealist paintings and and#8220;hand-painted dream photographsand#8221; such as The Persistence of Memory.A masterfully written biographical study, Salvador Daland#237; paints an arresting portrait of one of the most elusive artists of our time.
Synopsis
Each morning when I awake, I experience again a supreme pleasure that of being Salvador Dali. He was a force unto himself, an icon of outrageousness, artistic brilliance, eccentricity, and unmistakable style. Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dali y Domenech, Marquis of Pubol, was one of the foremost artists of the twentieth century, and in this concise narrative acclaimed art historian Mary Ann Caws provides a sharply written survey of his life and work.Salvador Dali examines every twist and turn in Dali s long and multifaceted career and the pivotal artistic movements at whose center he stood. From his early life in the Catalan region and his expulsions from the School of Fine Arts in Madrid and other schools to the surrealist movement and his work with Bunuel on the films Un chein andalou and L Age d or, Caws charts Dali s influences and creative process. Dali s turbulent personal life brought him in contact with a rich assortment of intellectual figures, and Caws considers his relationships with his family; his lovers, including the married Elena Diakonova; and with friends such as poet Federico Garcia Lorca. His writings, drawings, photography, and painted works offer up new clues about the artist under Caws s incisive eye, as she analyzes his lesser-known writings and creative works, as well as his Surrealist paintings and hand-painted dream photographs such as The Persistence of Memory.A masterfully written biographical study, Salvador Dali paints an arresting portrait of one of the most elusive artists of our time."
About the Author
Mary Ann Caws is the Distinguished Professor of English, French, and Comparative Literature at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She is the author of numerous books, including Picassoand#8217;s Weeping Woman: The Life and Art of Dora Maar, Virginia Woolf: Illustrated Life, Marcel Proust: Illustrated Life, Robert Motherwell with Pen and Brush, and Pablo Picasso.and#160;
Table of Contents
Introductionand#160;Birth of a Genius, 1904-16Precocious Painting, 1917-21Madrid and La Residencia, 1922-26St Sebastian: Dali and Lorca, 1926-28Dali, Lorca and Catalunya, 1925-36Miro, Dali, and Surrealism, 1928Bunuel and the Cinema, 1929and#160;Intermission: Filmic Daliand#160;Paris, Surrealism and Gala, 1929-30Fame Beginning, 1931-32Fame Increasing, Exhibitions Continuing, 1932-36and#160;Intermission: The Genius of Detailand#160;Lorca Dead, Narcissus Alive, 1936-38America's Dali, 1939-48Back Home, 1948-51and#160;Intermission: Magic Secrets of Paintingand#160;Winning the Battle, 1952-60Scandals and Seclusion, 1960-79Endings, 1980-89His Legacy, His Show, His Illusions,and#160;and#160;