Writers, readers and Dali
Dali has always been my favourite artist – when my Year 9 teacher showed me his painting The persistence of memory I was hooked. The talk Writers, readers and Dali was held in the NGV member’s lounge. I thought the talk would encompass more on Dali but instead it was mostly about the paintings in the member’s lounge and their relevance to literature.
The half an hour spent discussing Dali was interesting but apart from a few of the magazines he contributed to, there was no other art of Dali’s shown. Instead Dali’s writing career was explained. I have always thought of Dali as a surrealist painter but he was actually so much more: an impressionist, a book illustrator, a draftsman, a sculptor, a film producer, a fashion designer, a religious painter, a photographer, and of course, a writer.
Dali wrote from a young age and finished his first book at 10 years of age. At 14 he started a diary that was recently published. While studying he wrote controversial articles for his college newspaper. But he didn’t finish his Art degree – he was expelled for telling his teachers that they were not fit to judge his work. Dali was well known for his outrageous and outspoken nature. He spoke 4 languages fluently but in public would only speak French fluently to trick people – it was part of his persona.
During his writing career Dali also wrote a few film scripts and contributed articles and illustrations to popular magazines including Vogue. Dali also wrote articles about his favorite architect, Antoni Gaudi. I love the artistic quirkiness of Gaudi buildings, like you’ve stepped into some alternate universe. Dali published three biographies: The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí, Diary of a Genius, and Oui: The Paranoid-Critical Revolution. The Diary of a Genius was written in 3 months. That’s impressive. But his autobiographies didn’t have much truth to them – they were mostly musings designed to confuse the reader, but still, they were briliant.
The quote that still lingers in my mind from the talk: “Dali is one of the greatest minds and thinkers and writers of the 20th century – he’s wicked, yes, but he’s fantastic.”
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MWF: Writers, readers and Dali
August 28, 2009 at 6:39 am (Creative commentary, Reviews) (Dali, Melbourne Writer's Festival, readers and Dali, writer's festival, writers)
Writers, readers and Dali
Dali has always been my favourite artist – when my Year 9 teacher showed me his painting The persistence of memory I was hooked. The talk Writers, readers and Dali was held in the NGV member’s lounge. I thought the talk would encompass more on Dali but instead it was mostly about the paintings in the member’s lounge and their relevance to literature.
The half an hour spent discussing Dali was interesting but apart from a few of the magazines he contributed to, there was no other art of Dali’s shown. Instead Dali’s writing career was explained. I have always thought of Dali as a surrealist painter but he was actually so much more: an impressionist, a book illustrator, a draftsman, a sculptor, a film producer, a fashion designer, a religious painter, a photographer, and of course, a writer.
Dali wrote from a young age and finished his first book at 10 years of age. At 14 he started a diary that was recently published. While studying he wrote controversial articles for his college newspaper. But he didn’t finish his Art degree – he was expelled for telling his teachers that they were not fit to judge his work. Dali was well known for his outrageous and outspoken nature. He spoke 4 languages fluently but in public would only speak French fluently to trick people – it was part of his persona.
During his writing career Dali also wrote a few film scripts and contributed articles and illustrations to popular magazines including Vogue. Dali also wrote articles about his favorite architect, Antoni Gaudi. I love the artistic quirkiness of Gaudi buildings, like you’ve stepped into some alternate universe. Dali published three biographies: The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí, Diary of a Genius, and Oui: The Paranoid-Critical Revolution. The Diary of a Genius was written in 3 months. That’s impressive. But his autobiographies didn’t have much truth to them – they were mostly musings designed to confuse the reader, but still, they were briliant.
The quote that still lingers in my mind from the talk: “Dali is one of the greatest minds and thinkers and writers of the 20th century – he’s wicked, yes, but he’s fantastic.”
Like this: