“Salvador Dalî’s Stairway to Heaven” Plains Art Museum

salvador dali plains art museum stairway to heaven artworks works on paper watercolor surrealism surrealist

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Purgatory = Salvador Dalí, The Divine Comedy, Purgatory Dante Purified, 1960

Collection Of The Park West Museum

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Paradise 21 = Salvador Dalí Divine Comedy, Paradise The Mystical Ladder, 1960

Collection Of The Park West Museum

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Inferno 6 = Salvador Dalí, The Divine Comedy, Inferno Cerberus, 1960

Collection Of The Park West Museum

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395736 = Salvador Dalí, Les Chants de Maldoror Plate 9, 1934

Collection Of The Park West Museum

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Plains Art Museum is currently hosting the first major Salvador Dalí exhibition in North Dakota. Entitled “Salvador Dalî’s Stairway to Heaven,” the momentous presentation brings together two significant portfolios from the surrealist master: Dalí’s illustrations for the Comte de Lautréamont (1868-69) and Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy (1320). The latter project was initially commissioned by the Italian government in 1950 to celebrate the 700th anniversary of Dante — a decision mired in controversy.

By presenting both bodies of work together, the museum aims to shed light on Dalí’s affinity for the late legendary poet, his own personal life, as well as his obsession for creating watercolor artwork. In fact, the artist painted a total of 100 watercolors for the publication of “The Divine Comedy” between the years of 1951 and 1960. This sprawling body of work was also the highlight of an exhibition in 1960 with the illustrations reflecting each of the 14,000 verses from the historic Italian narrative poem.

“Salvador Dalî’s Stairway to Heaven” is on view until May 20, 2020. Check out select works in the slideshow above and then visit Plains Art Museum’s website to learn more.

Elsewhere in art, ICA Boston recently acquired diverse works by Njideka Akunyili Crosby, William Kentridge, and more.

Plains Art Museum
704 1st Ave N
Fargo, ND 58102

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