"Surrealism is Me!" Automatic translate

On April 27, an exhibition of graphic works by Salvador Dali "Surrealism is Me" will open at the All-Russian Museum of Decorative, Applied and Folk Art. As you know, the artist threw this phrase to his former like-minded people at the time of the break with a group of surrealists led by Andre Breton. And, indeed, in the world there is no greater surrealist than Dali, who subordinated to this ideology not only his work, but also life.

Salvador Dali was a man of extremely versatile and universal talent: a painter, sculptor, graphic artist, director, writer. The exhibition, organized at VMDPNI, is dedicated to one of the facets of this unique artist, as bright and deep as the others - the talent of the draftsman.

The exposition combines three cycles of engravings created by the author in the 70s, when, as a mature and world-famous artist, he comes to Paris for the second time and conquers him again.

The series “Memoirs of Surrealism” consists of lithographs from gouache originals printed on numbered sheets with the author’s pencil signatures. We can say that creating this series, Dali illustrated himself, allowing the viewer to "walk" through the winding nooks and crannies of his subconscious. The collection includes images of the key elements of the surreal universe of Dali: Gala, himself, watches, crutches, butterflies and much more. Works from this series have already been demonstrated in Moscow at the History Museum as part of an exhibition about the collective unconscious in art.

The second series - “Song of Songs of King Solomon” - demonstrates Dali’s interest in biblical and mythological subjects. This is an illustration of the canonical book of the Old Testament, published in New York in 1971. The cycle consists of 12 works executed in the technique of etching and supplemented with color and gold foil, which gives the images special lightness, airiness and grace.

And finally, the third series - “The Twelve Tribes of Israel” - was created in 1973 in honor of the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state. The theme of Yaakov’s blessing of his sons was reflected in tinted engravings made in a surrealistic manner typical of Dali. In thematic compositions, biblical images are intertwined with author’s allegories typical of the artist. At the same time, Dali’s engravings on biblical themes are characterized by greater lyricism, gentleness, seriousness and sincerity of empathy for the characters.

An examination of the authenticity of the works presented at the exhibition was carried out by a reputable English engraving expert Bernard Shapiro.

The organizer of the exhibition, together with the Museum of Decorative, Applied and Folk Art, is Volkhonka Art Project, a company specializing in exhibitions of foreign art, whose portfolio includes more than 50 different projects, including the “City of Cities” in the Museum of Architecture named after Shchuseva, “Graphics by Francisco Goya” at the Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts, etc.

The exhibition runs until May 15, 2017.