Paper

1996.23

Reese PalleyMarilyn Arnold Palley

Gift

Gift of Reese and Marilyn Arnold Palley

14 in

9-1/4 in

Cultural/Historical Context

" ""The difference between a madman and me,"" Dali is often quoted as saying, ""is that l am not mad."" Indeed he was not, for largely through his own skillful self-promotion, Dali remains one of the most familiar names in the annals of 20th century art. Best known as the most exotic and eccentric proponent of the Surrealist movement, Dali created through what he termed ""paranoic-critical activity,"" which he described as a ""spontaneous method of irrational knowledge based on the critical and systematic objectification of delirious associations and interpretations."" The Surrealists repudiated Dali for various reasons, such as his interest in Nazism and his tendency towards self-glorification. ""Dali insinuated himself into the Surrealist movement in 1929,"" according to their leader,,André Breton, and . . he proceeded thereafter by a series of borrowings and juxtapositions."" Nevertheless Dali's work epitomizes the mixture of dream-state and reality that characterizes the Surrealist movement."