Salvador Dalí is one of the world’s most recognizable and feted artists. This museum, known as The Dalí, is dedicated to his iconic Surrealist style as well as earlier works that showcase his versatility.
t The stunning concrete and undulating glass façade of The Dalí
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t The dramatic helical staircase inside the Salvador Dalí Museum
Although far from the native country of Spanish artist Salvador Dalí (1904–89), this museum holds the most comprehensive collection of his work outside of Spain, spanning his entire career. The first museum opened in 1982, 40 years after Ohio businessman Reynolds Morse and his wife Eleanor saw the first exhibition of Dalí’s work, and began collecting his works. After a nationwide search, Morse chose St. Petersburg for the collection because of its resemblance to the artist’s childhood summer home of Cadaqués. The museum moved to a spectacular hurricane-proof waterfront location in 2011. In addition to 96 original oil paintings, the museum has more than 100 watercolors and drawings, along with 1,300 graphics, sculptures, and other objects. The works range from Dalí’s early figurative paintings to his first experiments in Surrealism, and the biggest collection of mature, large-scale compositions described as his “masterworks.”
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Gallery Highlights |
Early WorksThe 1926 oil painting Basket of Bread shows the formal influence of Dalí’s education before he began experimenting with Surrealism. |
InfluencesDalí eschewed the politicsm of contemporary Surrealist artists during the 1930s. Paintings like The Weaning of Furniture Nutrition (1934) hint at other influences: his childhood home, the symbolism of Freud, and friends such as René Magritte. |
SurrealismDalí was expelled from the Surrealist movement in 1939, but he remains one of its most prominent figures. The museum houses some of his early attempts, like Apparatus and Hand (1927), as well as iconic works. |
Nuclear MysticismDuring the 1950s, Dalí became more passionate about profound and complex topics like science and religion. His paintings from this “nuclear mysticism” era explore his new obsessions. In Nature Morte Vivante (Living Still Life, 1956), for example, the flying objects reflect the movement of the atom. |
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