Following the extended “Picasso/ Dalí, Dalí /Picasso” exhibit, the Salvador Dalí Museum opened “Dalí & da Vinci: Minds, Machines and Masterpieces,” displaying the works of Salvador Dalí and Leonardo da Vinci side by side.
The Museum said the exhibit features more than 75 works and reproductions, including reproductions of da Vinci diagrams, Dalí manuscripts and paintings
Although the two minds are quite different, da Vinci’s influence is clear in Dalí’s work.
Some of Dalí’s pieces are reinterpretations of da Vinci’s paintings, including da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.” Dalí paints himself as Mona Lisa, with his infamous bulging eyes and moustache. He replaced her hands with his, holding money to provide a meaning behind the mysterious Mona Lisa smile.
Dalí and da Vinci were both intrigued with combining art and science into one and exploring the human experience. The Museum said visitors will explore five major themes at the exhibit: Science, psychology, invention, mathematics and painting
The new knowledge of Dalí’s era affected his paintings, such as the Atomic Age in which we discovered that we are made up of atoms, making us more space than matter. In many of Dalí’s paintings, objects are broken down, separated or floating. An example of this Dalían technique at the exhibit is “Leda Atomica” by Dali is displayed next to da Vinci’s “Leda and the Swan.”
Both artists were fascinated with underwater exploration. Da Vinci invented an underwater breathing device and a reproduction was displayed at the exhibit.
Dalí, seen sometimes wearing a deep sea diver suit, compared the ocean to the subconscious. Influenced by Freudian theories at the time, Dalí wanted to dive into the subconscious, bringing up lost treasure hidden deep inside the mind and evoke the subconscious through his paintings.
In Dalí’s book, “50 Secrets of Magic Craftsmanship,” Dalí exposes some of his “secrets” to dreaming. Some of the secrets appear to include how to control dreams and bizarre techniques.
One of the infamous techniques, “Slumber with a key,” was displayed at the exhibit, which Dalí used to awaken the subconscious before painting.
The exhibit was intriguing, but Dalí’s bizarre outlook on life can only leave you with one question: Gifted genius or utterly mad?
If you go:
The Dali Museum is at 1 Dalí Blvd from March 8 to July 26. The exhibit, along with the museum, will be closed March 27-29 during the Firestone Grand Prix.
The museum is free for USF St. Petersburg students. For others: General admission is $24; seniors 65 years or older, military, police, firefighters and educators get in for $22; teenagers ages 13-17 get in for $17; Children 6-12 years old get in for $10; Children 5 and younger get in free.
