DALISAURUS SURREALIUS 1890-1891 Figueres, Girona, Catalonia, Spain
Although it is widely believed that the surrealist artist, Salvador Dali developed his unique style over time, one cannot help but make a parallel between his work and a native resident of Spain, the Dalisaurus Surrealius. These creatures would have been quite common during Dali’s early years in Figueres as they strolled along the plains and occasionally onto the cobbled streets using a silver-tipped cane to balance. Dali’s name noticeably shares a similarity, so to does his trademark moustache. It is this evidence that has pointed art historians towards the Dalisaurus as a significant influence in his work. The Dalisaurus Surrealius captured on canvas by Charles Burroughs between 1890 and 1891, is generally considered to show that, far from being a placid beast, it created mayhem whereever it went with its ability to warp objects and melt timepieces until it was shooed out of existence in 1919, just as Dali held his first exhibition. Tired of replacing the town clock, a group of vigilantes carrying cucumbers shooed the entire herd of Dalisaurus Surrealius away to a nearby olive grove where the herd was faced with a tough dose of reality and asked to stop being so surreal. Unable to cope with the alien concept, one by one they popped out of existence leaving just a collection of moustaches which are still on display and can be found at the Salvador Dali museum in Port Lligat.
dalisaurus surrealius Limited Edition Canvas on Board of 95 Image Size 30” x 18 3/4 ” Framed £595
NA T I ONA L MU S EUM OF AN T I QU I T I E S F o u n d e d 1 7 8 6
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