The Dali Legacy - How an Eccentric Genius Changed the Art World and Created a Lasting Legacy

This immersive dive into the life and work of Salvador Dali unlocks the secret of this creative genius and reveals for the first time how his erotically charged paintings changed the world of modern art.

In turns beloved and reviled, twentieth-century painter, filmmaker, and designer Salvador Dali set Europe and the United States ablaze with his uncompromising genius, sexual sadism, and flirtations with megalomania. His shocking behavior and work frequently alienated critics; his views were so outrageous, even prominent Surrealists tried to ostracize him. Still, every morning he experienced "an exquisite joy--the joy of being Salvador Dalí," and because of his remarkable talent, Dali rose to unprecedented levels of fame--forever shifting the landscape of the art world and the nature of celebrity itself.

In this stunning volume, rich with more than 150 full-color images, noted art historians Jean-Pierre Isbouts and Christopher Heath Brown discuss the historical, social, and political conditions that shaped Dali's work, identify the impact of modern as well as old master art, and present an unflinching view of the master's personal relationships and motivations. With their deeply compelling narrative, Isbouts and Brown uncover how Dalí's visual wit and enduring cult of personality still impacts fashion, literature, and art, from Andy Warhol to Lady Gaga, and answer why, in an age of shock and awe, Dali's art still manages to distress, perplex, and entertain. An unparalleled guide to Dali and a critical resource for anyone keen to understand the development of modern art, The Dali Legacy is complemented by a contextualizing foreword from Frank Hunter, director of the Salvador Dali Archives.

List of contents

Foreword by Frank Hunter, Director of the Salvador Dali Archives

Introduction

1. Beginnings


2. The Early Years: 1922–1926


3. The Years in the Wilderness: 1926–1929


4. The Persistence of Memory: 1929–1934


5. New Horizons: 1934–1945


6. The Atomic Era: 1945–1955


7. The Mystic Universe: 1955–1960


8. A Return to the Past: 1960–1968


9. The Later Years: 1968–1989


10. Epilogue

Essays

A New Interpretation of The Persistence of Memory

Illusion and Meaning in Dali’s The Skull of Zurbarán

Timeline of the Life and Art of Salvador Dali

Further reading

Notes

Credits

About the author

Christopher Heath Brown is one of the most prominent collectors of works by Salvador Dali in the United States and serves as the director of Brown Discoveries, a research institute focused on Renaissance, Surrealist, and Contemporary art. Together with Jean-Pierre Isbouts, Dr. Brown is the coauthor of The da Vinci Legacy: How an Elusive 16th-Century Artist Became a Global Pop Icon, The Mona Lisa Myth, and Young Leonardo, and the coproducer of The Search for the Last Supper and The Search for the Mona Lisa specials shown on Public Television. Dr. Brown lives in Cornelius, North Carolina.

Summary

This immersive dive into the life and work of Salvador Dali unlocks the secret of this creative genius and reveals for the first time how his erotically charged paintings changed the world of modern art.

In turns beloved and reviled, twentieth-century painter, filmmaker, and designer Salvador Dali set Europe and the United States ablaze with his uncompromising genius, sexual sadism, and flirtations with megalomania. His shocking behavior and work frequently alienated critics; his views were so outrageous, even prominent Surrealists tried to ostracize him. Still, every morning he experienced “an exquisite joy—the joy of being Salvador Dalí,” and because of his remarkable talent, Dali rose to unprecedented levels of fame—forever shifting the landscape of the art world and the nature of celebrity itself.

In this stunning volume, rich with more than 150 full-color images, noted art historians Jean-Pierre Isbouts and Christopher Heath Brown discuss the historical, social, and political conditions that shaped Dali's work, identify the impact of modern as well as old master art, and present an unflinching view of the master's personal relationships and motivations. With their deeply compelling narrative, Isbouts and Brown uncover how Dalí's visual wit and enduring cult of personality still impacts fashion, literature, and art, from Andy Warhol to Lady Gaga, and answer why, in an age of shock and awe, Dali's art still manages to distress, perplex, and entertain. An unparalleled guide to Dali and a critical resource for anyone keen to understand the development of modern art, The Dali Legacy is complemented by a contextualizing foreword from Frank Hunter, director of the Salvador Dali Archives.

Foreword

Mainstream media targets will include outlets that cover art, such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, T: The New York Times Style Magazine, The Guardian, as well as art specific media such as ArtNews, ArtForum, BOMB, the International Arts Magazine, and Aesthetica, and regional media around author residences in Santa Monica, CA (KTLA, LA Times, Los Angeles Daily News, LA Weekly) and in the Cornelius, NC (Spectrum News1, WFAE, The Charlotte Observer, The Herald, Charlotte Post, Cornelius Today).

Stunning four-color spreads, artwork, and excerpts will be available for media to excerpt.

Online promotion: Authors will heavily promote the book on the Dali Facebook page they helm with nearly 7 million followers, and host readings and Q&As with online art groups, libraries, and independent bookstores.

Targeted digital advertising with SEO keywords on sites like Amazon, Google, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok/BookTok with a focus toward Salvador Dali, modern art, and surrealism.

In-person signings: Authors will be available for readings and signings at bookstores and libraries in California and North Carolina.

Adoption campaign: Book will be pitched to art history professors and teachers for required or supplementary reading at colleges, universities, and high schools.

Product details

• Authors: Christopher Heath Brown, Jean-Pierre Isbouts
• Assisted by: Frank Hunter (Foreword)
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Release: 31.07.2024, delayed
• EAN: 9781954641426
• ISBN: 978-1-954641-42-6
• No. of pages: 328
• Illustrations: 154 color images
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature > Letters, diaries; Humanities, art, music > Art > Art history; Theory of art, European History, ART / Individual Artists / Essays, ART / European, History of Art, HISTORY / Europe / Spain