After being introduced to surrealism through the friends of fellow Catalan painter Joan Miró i Ferrà, Dalí began using “dreamlike images” central to the movement, employing his “paranoiac-critical” technique, stating, “The only difference between me and a madman is that I am not mad.” His imagery was intended to reflect the revelatory juxtapositions of his unconscious mind. Throughout his oeuvre—which includes famous paintings such as The Persistence of Memory, 1931, and The Elephants, 1948—normally-solid objects such as bodies and landscapes are often warped, softened, and placed in awkward positions that suggest states of threat, mystery, or panic.
While Dalí is a significant figure in surrealism, known for establishing and promoting key techniques that were inspired by Sigmund Freud's theories on the mind, his relationship with the movement became controversial over time. He was eventually expelled from the surrealist group, which supported the French Communist Party, due to his perceived sympathy for fascism and with figures like Hitler.
Later, living in the United States, Dalí gained attention for his eccentric ways. He worked with different Hollywood creatives and was featured on the cover of Time magazine in 1936. Dalí has been featured in numerous exhibitions and has had quite a few museums dedicated to him including Dalí Theatre and Museum in Figueres, Catalonia, Spain and Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida. Salvador Dalí died 1989 in the place of his birth. The Dalí Theatre and Museum is his final resting place.
(Biography written by Mya Birdsong)