Salvador Dalí, a surrealist who has no equal – given the abundance of exhibitions, it is nothing short of a miracle that the Art Institute in Chicago is only now dedicating him a solo show. However, the perspective ist, what makes the exhibition exciting: starting on February 18, visitors will look at a contradictory desire of the artist.
As a figurehead of Surrealism, the Spanish artist Salvador Dalí is on everyone's lips. He further deformed the already whimsical genre with his own unique charm, allowing contradictory impulses to guide him: being seen was as important to him as disappearing. The Chicago Art Institute turns its attention to this phenomenon beginning Feb. 18. It is the museum's first solo show devoted to the most famous of all Surrealists.
In Salvador Dalí: The Image Disappears, the Art Institute brings together more than 30 paintings, drawings, photographs, surrealist objects, and a rich selection of prints, books, and artist ephemera from the 1930s. They bear witness to his pioneering experiments with materials and color, which found expression in edible objects as well as surrealist sculptures with hiding places or even optical illusions and »double images.« The public can look forward to masterpieces such as Inventions of the Monsters (1937) or Venus de Milo with Drawers (1936). Until June 12, visitors can engage in the interplay of visibility and disappearance.
With 177 invited galleries, this year's Art Brussels is celebrating its 40th edition. The extensive program with current themes ranges from digital art, painting and photography to art in public space. The fair opens on April 25 in Halls 5 and 6 of the Brussels Expo.
Australia wins the Golden Lion for the best pavilion, the Mataaho Collective from New Zealand the one for the main exhibition: the awards fit in with the Biennale's concept of giving indigenous art the attention it deserves.
