China to open Salvador Dalí retrospective exhibition for first time

120 works of art showcased in project halted during Covid-19 pandemic restrictions

Sketch for a stage production for Balet's 'Tristan and Iseult' based on Richard Wagner's piece
Sketch for a stage production for Balet's 'Tristan and Iseult' based on Richard Wagner's piece / Courtesy of Gala - Salvador Dalí Foundation
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April 26, 2023 07:05 PM

Painter Salvador Dalí is well-known internationally for his surrealist art, and while many retrospectives have been curated since his death, none have ever reached China. But this will change on Thursday when the first visitors walk into Guiyang international fashion center's Dalí exhibition.

The show features 120 works of art, all owned by the Gala - Salvador Dalí Foundation, and will focus on three aspects of Dalí's work: his classic references, such as Velázquez and Michelangelo, his sketches for stage productions, and his optical illusions.

Salvador Dalí's joint art piece with Walt Disney in late 1945 for a short movie
Salvador Dalí's joint art piece with Walt Disney in late 1945 for a short movie / Courtesy of Gala - Salvador Dalí Foundation

The opening of the exhibition, 'Salvador Dalí - A Universal Genius',coincides with the 50th anniversary of the bilateral relationship between China and Spain. The project has been in the planning for years but the Covid-19 pandemic halted the exhibit.

Several Spanish dignitaries will be among the guests at the exhibition opening in southwest China, such as Spain's ambassador to China and the Spanish cultural minister in China.

Salvador Dalí's first landscapes will be the starting point of the exhibition, and visitors will also be shown some of his last works, especially those that are a homage to the great painters of old. The surrealism era will also be represented by the 'Untitled - Bal Onirique' and the 'Eclipse and Vegetable Osmosis' paintings.