Salvador Dali - one of the most recognizable artists of the 20th century.
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dali and Domenech, the Marquis de Pubol, was the son of a notary, Catalan painter, surrealist, who was born in Figueres in 1904 and died there in 1989. He showed his artistic abilities as a child. At the age of 14 he successfully exhibited his paintings. Dali is the creator of many works that cause a lot of emotions and controversies.
1
He was the first marquis of Dali de Pubol.
The castle of Pubol was a gift for Salvador's great love Gala. When Dali became the owner of the castle, he was knighted by the Marquis of Pubol. The reason he bought the castle was to visit Gala. He decorated the interior of the castle himself.
2
He never graduated.
While studying at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid, he was known for his eccentric behavior and dressing in the style of the nineteenth-century British dandy. He never finished school, was thrown out twice. First time for participating in a student protest, the second time just before the final exams. He believed that he was better qualified than people who would examine him.
3
He was the author of many aphorisms.
Dali used to say, "There is only one difference between a madman and me. The madman thinks he is sane. I know I am mad."
4
While creating, the artist never used substances "modifying consciousness". He used to say: "I don't do drugs. I am drugs."
In the early 1930s, he developed a method called paranoid-critical. This method was based on pretending to be insane. For example, he stared at the painted object until he himself began to "change form", becoming a kind of hallucination. This method has become crucial for the development of surrealism.
5
He loved ripping money off of naive people.
The closest friend, confidant and muse of the artist Amanda Lear recalls that John Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, wanted to buy a fragment of Dali's famous mustache. He, however, "thought that Yoko Ono was a witch and did not want her to possess any of his private items, and certainly a mustache." So he sent Lear to the garden to gather a dry, faded blade of grass. He packed it elegantly and sent to Yoko. Yoko Ono paid $ 10,000 for it.
6
Dali was the third Salvador in the family.
This was also name of his father and older brother, who died nine months before the birth of the painter. Once, during a visit to the cemetery, parents told Salvador, who was 9 then, that he was the reincarnation of his brother. Dali believed this all his life. He dedicated a painting to his dead brother in 1963 years called "Portrait of my dead brother".
7
Dali was fascinated by Hitler.
He claimed that he often dreams of him, like other men dream of women.
8
He had eccentric ideas already in high school.
From this period he was remembered not as an extremely talented student but for creating a spectacle in which he threw himself down the stairs in front of the entire school audience.
9
He was always fascinated by the legendary painter Pablo Picasso.
While in Paris in 1927, he met with Picasso in his atelier, where the painter showed him his works. They made a huge impression on Dali but he later claimed that one of his paintings is worth more than all of Picasso's.
10
Dali designed the Chupa Chups logo.
During his career he created many advertisements and logos.
11
He once gave a lecture at the Surrealists Exhibition in London in an old, deep sea diving suit.
He wanted to illustrate his subconscious mind in this way, but he did not foresee that he would have limited air access there. The audience didn't realize it until Dali passed out.
12
He was fascinated by the appearance of Diego Velazquez.
Dali's famous mustache was modeled on the mustache of a recognized painter.
13
He appeared in restaurants in the company of his cat.
Babou was an ocelot, which Dali acquired in 1960 from a Colombian notable. He took him for walks in a collar richly encrusted with precious stones.
14
He was often called "Avida Dollars".
He loved money and was known for his greed. He often used unethical methods to earn them. Once, he sold a painting to a wealthy client for a considerable amount, claiming that the paint was mixed with wasp venom.
15
Dali and his beloved wife Helena Diakonova, better known as Gala, loved to organize lavish parties.
They were extremely extravagant and required a lot of creativity and courage from the invited guests, as wild animals walked between them. Parties were usually themed, to which guests had to match their costumes.
16
He loved fashion.
The artist willingly collaborated with various designers who created their creations based on his works. He worked with Christian Dior on a collection inspired by the future of humanity, when the artist designed a dress for 2045.
17
He designed four Vogue magazine covers.
18
The artist worked on increasing his creativity.
One day he figured out how to remember his dreams. He fell asleep with spoon in his hand over a tin plate. After falling asleep, the spoon hit the plate and made such a noise that Dali woke up immediately and wrote down what he dreamed of.
19
Was he inspired by Einstein?
Critics and scholars wondered if Dali's famous Melting Watch was inspired on Einsteins theory of relativity.
20
He had sadistic tendencies in his childhood.
In his memoirs he wrote that at the age of five, he dropped a child out of a bridge for no reason. The child suffered serious injury. George Orwell, after reading Dali's biography in which he described his sadistic tendencies, stated that Dali was a good cartoonist but a disgusting man.
21
He was fascinated by Freud.
After reading his interpretation of dreams, he stated that this book was one of the greatest discoveries of his life. Ideas about dreams and the subconscious had a huge impact on his work.
22
In 1954, Dali and photographer Philippe Halsman published a book entirely devoted to the mustache.
