Surrealist Master Salvador Dali, Vintage Woven Tapestry, Lions, Tribe of Judah, c.1980's

Description

Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) – Spanish painter, graphic artist and sculptor
Signed ‘Salvador Dalí, woven in the carpet lower right.

The … more Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) – Spanish painter, graphic artist and sculptor
Signed ‘Salvador Dalí, woven in the carpet lower right.

The Spanish artist’s extensive oeuvre not only includes watercolors, drawings and sculptures but also tapestries; here a fine example from the limited edition ‘The Twelve Tribes of Israel’
The tapestry was created after an etching by Salvador Dalí from 1973 with the title ‘The Tribe of Judah’, which the artist created as part of a suite to mark the 25th anniversary of the State of Israel, and in which he represented the twelve tribes of Israel. This vintage French tapestry is an impeccable textile re-creation of a rare Dali etching. This is a flat weave Aubusson style tapisserie. The edition size was 500. The tapestry is inscribed with woven ‘Salvador Dalí’ lower right

Genre: Surrealism
Subject: people, architecture rendering
Medium: textile

Salvador Dali (Spanish, 1904-1989)
Salvador Dali is considered as the greatest original artist of the surrealist art movement and one of the greatest masters of art of the twentieth century.
Dali began to study art at the Royal Academy of Art in Madrid. He was expelled twice and never took the final examinations. His opinion was that he was more qualified than those who should have examined him.
In 1928 Dali went to Paris where he met the Spanish painters Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. He established himself as the principal figure of a group of surrealist artists grouped around Andre Breton, who was something like the theoretical "schoolmaster" of surrealism. Years later Breton turned away from Dali accusing him of support of fascism, excessive self-presentation and financial greediness.
By 1929 Dali had found his personal style that should make him famous - the world of the unconscious that is recalled during our dreams. The surrealist theory is based on the theories of the psychologist Dr. Sigmund Freud. Recurring images of burning giraffes and melting watches became the artist's surrealist trademarks. Along with Rene Magritte his is considered the greatest of the Surrealists. His great craftsmanship allowed him to execute his paintings in a nearly photo realistic style. No wonder that the artist was a great admirer of the vintage Italian Renaissance painter Raphael. Meeting Gala was the most important event in the artist's life and decisive for his future career. She was a Russian immigrant and ten years older than Dali. When he met her, she was married to Paul Eluard. In 1933 Salvador Dali had his first one-man show in New York. One year later he visited the U.S. for the first time supported by a loan of US$500 from Pablo Picasso. To evade World War II, Dali chose the U.S.A. as his permanent residence in 1940. He had a series of spectacular exhibitions, among others a great retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He has worked in paining, sculpture, tapestry, Daum glass and prints.
Dali became the darling of the American High Society. Celebrities like Jack Warner or Helena Rubinstein gave him commissions for portraits. His artworks became a popular trademark and besides painting he pursued other activities - jewelry and dated clothing designs for Coco Chanel or film making with Alfred Hitchcock.
In 1948 Dali and Gala returned to Europe, spending most of their time either in their residence in Ligate/Spain or in Paris/France or in New York. Dali developed a lively interest in science, religion and history. He integrated things into his art that he had picked up from popular science magazines. Another source of inspiration were the great classical masters of painting like Raphael, Velasquez or the French painter Ingres.
The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg in Florida/U.S.A.
This art museum was founded in 1971 by the Dali collector A. Reynolds Morse and his wife Eleanor.
Dali Museum-Theater in Figueres, Spain
The Museum was the former Municipal Theater of Figueres.
Since 1970 the artist had dedicated his energy to transform the former Municipal Theater into a museum and art gallery. In 1974 the Theatro Museo Dali was officially opened. less