What do you think?
Rate this book
Dalí
Un recorrido por la pintura y la vida de su autor.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1968
10 people are currently reading
565 people want to read
About the author
Salvador Dalí
371 books725 followersSalvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, 1st Marquis of Púbol, was a Spanish surrealist painter born in Figueres, Catalonia.
Dalí was a skilled draftsman, best known for the striking and bizarre images in his surrealist work. His painterly skills are often attributed to the influence of Renaissance masters. His best known work, The Persistence of Memory, was completed in 1931.
Salvador Dalí's artistic repertoire also included film, sculpture, and photography. He collaborated with Walt Disney on the Academy Award-nominated short cartoon Destino, which was released posthumously in 2003. He also collaborated with Alfred Hitchcock on Hitchcock's film Spellbound.
Dalí insisted on his "Arab lineage", claiming that his ancestors were descended from the Moors who occupied Southern Spain for nearly 800 years (711-1492), and attributed to these origins, "my love of everything that is gilded and excessive, my passion for luxury and my love of oriental clothes."
Widely considered to be greatly imaginative, Dalí had an affinity for doing unusual things to draw attention to himself. This sometimes irked those who loved his art as much as it annoyed his critics, since his eccentric manner sometimes drew more public attention than his artwork. The purposefully-sought notoriety led to broad public recognition and many purchases of his works by people from all walks of life.
Dalí was a skilled draftsman, best known for the striking and bizarre images in his surrealist work. His painterly skills are often attributed to the influence of Renaissance masters. His best known work, The Persistence of Memory, was completed in 1931.
Salvador Dalí's artistic repertoire also included film, sculpture, and photography. He collaborated with Walt Disney on the Academy Award-nominated short cartoon Destino, which was released posthumously in 2003. He also collaborated with Alfred Hitchcock on Hitchcock's film Spellbound.
Dalí insisted on his "Arab lineage", claiming that his ancestors were descended from the Moors who occupied Southern Spain for nearly 800 years (711-1492), and attributed to these origins, "my love of everything that is gilded and excessive, my passion for luxury and my love of oriental clothes."
Widely considered to be greatly imaginative, Dalí had an affinity for doing unusual things to draw attention to himself. This sometimes irked those who loved his art as much as it annoyed his critics, since his eccentric manner sometimes drew more public attention than his artwork. The purposefully-sought notoriety led to broad public recognition and many purchases of his works by people from all walks of life.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
February 9, 2012
I don't pretend to have any great knowledge of art. I fall into that category of, "I know what I like when I see it" crowd. Having seen a few examples of Dali's work at various museums around the world, I tend to enjoy its boldness, vivid colors, and usually clear, almost picture-like clarity of images. But until reading this book (not just look at the pictures) I didn't realize just how much lay behind the limp watches, phallic symbols, and other famous images of his work.
I still can't decide if Dali was brilliant, insane, or simply a huge egomaniac with a brush, but it really doesn't matter. He had a huge impact on the art world of the 20th century and I thought this book, while not intended to be a complete biography of the man, served adequately to give a good taste of him and even provided some insight into his character. And if you just want to look at the artwork, that is beautifully presented here.
I still can't decide if Dali was brilliant, insane, or simply a huge egomaniac with a brush, but it really doesn't matter. He had a huge impact on the art world of the 20th century and I thought this book, while not intended to be a complete biography of the man, served adequately to give a good taste of him and even provided some insight into his character. And if you just want to look at the artwork, that is beautifully presented here.
August 21, 2020
The author of this book was a good friend & collaborator with Dali on many projects, so this is definitely an insiders look on the life, thinking, behavior & significance of Salvador Dali as one of the great artists of the 20th Century. This is the third book on Dali that I have read, and by far the best. Relying heavily on Dali's own writing and recorded speeches & presentations, it's a LOT more insightful than most life & times type biographys. The images selected to support the text were all very appropriate, and made the text sound rather rational... which is quite a feat to accomplish with any surrealist artist. I can recommend this book to anybody who wants to get to more about the artist and his work.
November 19, 2014
I'm not a fan of Dali's art, but I can admire its unique and provocative beauty. I even like The Persistence of Memory for its strong symbolism. This book tells about Dali's life and gives the story behind many of his artistic creations.
Apparently, he was a very spoiled child who later became an adult with a constant need for attention and an overdeveloped ego. He also had a great love of money, so much that Andre Breton anagrammatically dubbed him “Avida Dollars” . He was strongly influenced by Freud, and it's probably one of the reasons why his art is filled with sexual symbolism. His muse and wife, Gala, was Paul Eluard's wife first and he had a fall out with his father over marrying her because she was a divorcee! (Oh, the olden days!) This fall out was at the origin of his painting The Enigma of William Tell , where William represents his dad, a dad who is cannibalising a small child cradled in his arms (Dali).
Learning where Dali is coming from definitely gives me a new appreciation of his art.
Apparently, he was a very spoiled child who later became an adult with a constant need for attention and an overdeveloped ego. He also had a great love of money, so much that Andre Breton anagrammatically dubbed him “Avida Dollars” . He was strongly influenced by Freud, and it's probably one of the reasons why his art is filled with sexual symbolism. His muse and wife, Gala, was Paul Eluard's wife first and he had a fall out with his father over marrying her because she was a divorcee! (Oh, the olden days!) This fall out was at the origin of his painting The Enigma of William Tell , where William represents his dad, a dad who is cannibalising a small child cradled in his arms (Dali).
Learning where Dali is coming from definitely gives me a new appreciation of his art.
October 19, 2024
A big, beautiful Taschen art book filled with copious and useful information about Salvador Dalí's life and work. A great introductory primer to the artist. The numerous large, color plates showing examples of Dalí's paintings are gorgeous and enchance the book immeasurably, making the tome an artwork in and of itself. A beautiful book about a curious man. Fascinating and fantastic.
July 9, 2018
A fun, insightful, and occasionally hilarious look at Dali's relationships, persona, and artistic vision throughout his lifetime. So full of prints, you can spend as much (or even more) time appreciating Dali's art as reading about him.
February 1, 2019
Excellent quality print, beautifully written biography - one of the first art books I ever bought.
Want to read
February 26, 202454 abebooks
April 7, 2025
The only thing brighter than the moonlight is the fire in your eyes. Perhaps we can use it to ignite something even hotter?
January 13, 2025
Robert Descharnes' Dalí is not merely a biography; it is an expansive journey into the kaleidoscopic world of Salvador Dalí—a surrealist maestro who blurred the boundaries between genius and spectacle, the real and the imaginary. Published as part of the Taschen art series, this comprehensive tome encapsulates the artist's enigmatic persona, his meticulous craft, and the provocative nature of his oeuvre.
A Symphony of Surrealism
Descharnes—Dalí’s confidant and biographer—brings an unparalleled intimacy to the narrative. Unlike other biographies that risk lapsing into hagiography or cold detachment, Dalí maintains a deft balance, weaving the personal with the professional, and the surreal with the sincere. The book’s structure, primarily chronological, invites readers to witness Dalí’s evolution—from his early days in Catalonia to his pivotal encounters with the Surrealist movement, and ultimately to the heights of his global fame.
The Genius and the Grotesque
What makes this work particularly compelling is Descharnes' ability to grapple with the contradictions that define Dalí. The text illuminates the artist's technical precision—his mastery of Renaissance-inspired realism juxtaposed with dreamlike distortion. At the same time, Descharnes does not shy away from Dalí's performative eccentricities: his carefully curated public persona, replete with flamboyant mustaches and audacious declarations. Dalí emerges not just as an artist, but as a provocateur who understood the power of mythmaking.
Rich Visual Storytelling
Visually, the book is a masterpiece in its own right. Taschen's signature approach to art monographs is on full display: high-quality reproductions of Dalí’s paintings, photographs, sketches, and even marginalia breathe life into the text. Iconic works like The Persistence of Memory and The Elephants are rendered in stunning detail, allowing readers to linger on every brushstroke and symbol. Beyond the paintings, archival photographs and personal ephemera offer rare glimpses into Dalí’s private world—his collaboration with Gala, his muse and wife, and his interactions with contemporaries like André Breton and Luis Buñuel.
Cultural Context and Critique
Descharnes situates Dalí within broader cultural and historical frameworks, elucidating the artist's complex relationships with movements like Surrealism, his flirtation with politics, and his eventual estrangement from the avant-garde community. The analysis is incisive but accessible, blending scholarly rigor with a narrative rhythm that keeps the reader engaged.
However, the book is not without its blind spots. Descharnes’ close relationship with Dalí occasionally casts a reverent glow over the artist, glossing over controversies with an air of inevitability rather than interrogation. For instance, Dalí’s later years—marked by accusations of commercial opportunism and ethical lapses—are treated with a degree of leniency that invites further scrutiny.
Dalí by Robert Descharnes is a triumph of art historical writing and visual storytelling. It celebrates the audacity and innovation of Salvador Dalí while inviting readers to grapple with the contradictions that make him such a fascinating figure. For anyone seeking to understand Dalí—not just as a painter, but as a phenomenon—this book is indispensable.
In Descharnes’ capable hands, Dalí’s life and art become a mirror in which we can examine our own perceptions of creativity, fame, and the role of the artist in society. It is a journey as surreal and compelling as Dalí’s canvases themselves.
A Symphony of Surrealism
Descharnes—Dalí’s confidant and biographer—brings an unparalleled intimacy to the narrative. Unlike other biographies that risk lapsing into hagiography or cold detachment, Dalí maintains a deft balance, weaving the personal with the professional, and the surreal with the sincere. The book’s structure, primarily chronological, invites readers to witness Dalí’s evolution—from his early days in Catalonia to his pivotal encounters with the Surrealist movement, and ultimately to the heights of his global fame.
The Genius and the Grotesque
What makes this work particularly compelling is Descharnes' ability to grapple with the contradictions that define Dalí. The text illuminates the artist's technical precision—his mastery of Renaissance-inspired realism juxtaposed with dreamlike distortion. At the same time, Descharnes does not shy away from Dalí's performative eccentricities: his carefully curated public persona, replete with flamboyant mustaches and audacious declarations. Dalí emerges not just as an artist, but as a provocateur who understood the power of mythmaking.
Rich Visual Storytelling
Visually, the book is a masterpiece in its own right. Taschen's signature approach to art monographs is on full display: high-quality reproductions of Dalí’s paintings, photographs, sketches, and even marginalia breathe life into the text. Iconic works like The Persistence of Memory and The Elephants are rendered in stunning detail, allowing readers to linger on every brushstroke and symbol. Beyond the paintings, archival photographs and personal ephemera offer rare glimpses into Dalí’s private world—his collaboration with Gala, his muse and wife, and his interactions with contemporaries like André Breton and Luis Buñuel.
Cultural Context and Critique
Descharnes situates Dalí within broader cultural and historical frameworks, elucidating the artist's complex relationships with movements like Surrealism, his flirtation with politics, and his eventual estrangement from the avant-garde community. The analysis is incisive but accessible, blending scholarly rigor with a narrative rhythm that keeps the reader engaged.
However, the book is not without its blind spots. Descharnes’ close relationship with Dalí occasionally casts a reverent glow over the artist, glossing over controversies with an air of inevitability rather than interrogation. For instance, Dalí’s later years—marked by accusations of commercial opportunism and ethical lapses—are treated with a degree of leniency that invites further scrutiny.
Dalí by Robert Descharnes is a triumph of art historical writing and visual storytelling. It celebrates the audacity and innovation of Salvador Dalí while inviting readers to grapple with the contradictions that make him such a fascinating figure. For anyone seeking to understand Dalí—not just as a painter, but as a phenomenon—this book is indispensable.
In Descharnes’ capable hands, Dalí’s life and art become a mirror in which we can examine our own perceptions of creativity, fame, and the role of the artist in society. It is a journey as surreal and compelling as Dalí’s canvases themselves.
Read
July 23, 2011Overall, pretty good. There's an excellent collection of Dali art (although not complete, which would be a feat in itself) and the picture quality is gorgeous. As far as the writing goes, it gets the job done. Sometimes the style gets a little self-indulgent and esoteric. In fact, it helps to know something about Surrealism and early 20th century art, since a lot of the writing hinges on (sometimes too deep a knowledge) of these topics. Regardless, you can a fair amount out of this book even if you have to Wikipedia "Surrealism." In other places, though, the writing is in-depth and detailed. I would have liked some more on the art, but I guess that betrays some of Dali's intended aims. A fairly quick read and, in the end, totally worth it. Plus, I think I got it for $7 or $10, so it can't be beat. Definitely coffee table worthy.
August 26, 2016
While in Joshua Tree over the course of two days I absorbed this book. A fitting landscape for such an artist. The rain persisted, so I would often have hours on end where I could not photograph without harm to camera, and so I was allowed the secondary fortune of reading. I have read of no man so absurd as Dali - and I hope if he were still here, he would find this in the greatest of terms. The way he uses the English language to describe his work and philosophies is again, like no other. It is more Dali than English at times. However, tis useful. I found more connection with his early work, rather than his later more religious work: this could be in part due to my current human age.
May 11, 2014
I learned a lot about Salvador Dali's private and professional life as well as how he got into Surrealism from this book. I have always enjoyed books by Taschen and I have a whole book shelf of all my favorite artists in this series. This book is well written and the images are sharp and crisp. Having been to the Dali Museum a couple of times in Florida, I enjoyed reading about my favorite paintings in this book.
June 11, 2016
Dug this up from my old art history days, published in 1985, and used to accompany the introductory forwards of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, illustrated by the Master and reprinted through Princeton University Press in 2015. While not a thorough history of Dali's life work, the book is a decent survey with nice color prints. Adequate enough, but missing the fine details of a true visual biography.
October 2, 2011
I did not read the text. I just skimmed through the book to check out the art. Dali is quite an enigma. I can't get into his style, but my husband really likes him. Not sure why. I don't see any appeal in this man's work =/ This artist must have been a haunted man. Or crazy. Or brilliant. Perhaps all three. That is the only explanation I have for his bizarre paintings.
July 18, 2009
Of course it doesn't do justice to his massive amount of works in sculpture but it's an excellent collection of his paintings. My edition is translated by Eleanor R Morse and published by Abradale Press and has The Persistence of Memory on the cover.
January 18, 2016
Dali is one the most fantastic artists ever known. A born salesman and enchanting storyteller
in his mastery of dreamscape or surrealism. MOMA in nyc had a great exhibition of his work
several years ago and it was totally worth it.
June 2, 2011
Fascinating.
January 15, 2018
El señor Dali con sus "significados profundos" y "yuxtaposiciones" incongruentes, y yo que pensaba que su surrealismo no era mas que puro Arte metafísico.
Read
April 26, 2018I learned that Dali is a very interesting individual!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews