Scheduled to exhibit until January 9, 2011, "Dalí: The Late Work" is an event that should not be missed. Departing from exhibiting only Salvador Dalí's most popularly known work, the High Museum proudly showcases Dalí's later works, making the point that his creative and innovative spirit was very much present in the latter half of the 20th century. In addition, "Dalí" shows how important Dalí was to the emergence of pop art as well as other aspects of popular culture.
There are gems for the Dalí traditionalists. Both "Christ of St. John of the Cross" and "Santiago El Grande" haven't been exhibited in the United States in nearly five decades. "Assumpta Corpuscularia Lapislazulina" hasn't been exhibited publicly since 1959. All three of these works contain very classical elements. They also more clearly resemble the surreal aspects for which Dalí is most well-known. They also demonstrate touches of classicism.
Much of the exhibit, however, shows Dalí in the context of the modern 20th century, truly highlighting his celebrity status. "Dalí was a major celebrity," guest curator and Dalí scholar Elliott King told a crowd of journalists during a media preview. "What we are trying to convey is Dalí as a major pop figure."
And they succeed. In Hollywood, it was quite posh for powerful people like Jack Warner, co-founder and main force behind Warner Bros., to pay Dalí upwards of $7000 to paint portraits of them in his surreal settings. Just because they were paying didn't compel Dalí to bend to their wishes so many of them disliked their portraits. Others, however, did enjoy them. These are among the not so well-known gems in the High exhibit.
Dalí was a captivating figure and clearly the most famous artist of the 20th century, especially considering that his fame was most spiked in France, his native Spain and the United States. There is an installation in the exhibit that includes nothing more than Dalí's many magazine covers. Two museums, the Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí in Figueres, Spain, where Dalí was born, and the
Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, fuel much of the exhibition.
Local hotels such as The Four Seasons, Loews Atlanta, the Artmore Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead have specialty packages for the exhibit that include show tickets, accomodations and even meals for two. Several featured presentations are planned throughout the exhibit, including "Dalí: The Filmmaker," which looks at Dalí's interest in film with guest curator Elliott King, who also wrote "Dalí, Surrealism and Cinema," on August 21, 8pm - 10pm. Other presentations even include a conversation with some who knew Dalí, who died in 1989.
Tickets to the exhibit, which opened August 7, are $18 for adults. More information about the exhibit can be found here.
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