The Salvador Dali Museum

The Dali Museum is in Saint Petersburg Florida. The city has a definite “Artsy” vibe. The museum is right next to an airport. It was actually a bit chilly on the morning I was there. I got to the museum before it opened and decided to sketch the building and gardens before going in. The cement “bench” was in the sun. I leaned back against a light pole and warmed up as I sketched. The architecture of the museum is fascinating, with a glass dome wrapping around the back of the building like an octopus. The garden was arranged as a maze with surreal melting benches. A gentleman admired my work. He tripped on some grass and fell on top of me. I broke his fall. I got a comment from a reader the other day saying that my work is kind of literal, and they would like to see me work in a more surreal or impressionistic style. As soon as man discovered how to make art, there was the art critic.

In the lobby there was an old vintage car that had a mermaid in the back seat. Windows were dripping. The driver wore a heavy metal divers helmet. From the book, “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay” I remember reading about Dali showing up at a party in such a diving helmet. The faceplate got stuck and Dali almost suffocated to death.

A security guard made me leave my artist stood downstairs when I checked in. I wouldn’t be relaxing and sketching any galleries. The collection has work from Dali back from his student days. I respect the fact that Dali was expelled from art school because he felt he knew more about art than his teachers. Some of his paintings were huge. One piece showed a woman standing and looking out at an ocean through a cross shaped window. There was a small portrait of Lincoln hidden in a panel. Later from across the room I saw the painting again in a whole new light. The hole huge 20 foot high canvas was a portrait of Lincoln but I couldn’t see it from up close. These sort of inspired surprises are when Dali is at his best. I remember hearing that Dali got annoyed that the paper used at Disney Feature Animation had peg holes in it, when he was doing developmental work for Destino back in 1946.