“Dalí Deeply Loved Those Production Processes”: Co-Curator Judith Clark Gives a First Look at New Exhibition “Dalí and Fashion”

Dalí and His “Infinite Work”

At the end of September, coinciding with Milan Fashion Week, Palazzo Reale will inaugurate “Dalí and Fashion.” The exhibition—co-curated by me with Laura Bartolomé, under the scientific direction of Montse Aguer of the Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí in Figueres, Catalonia, home to the important research center housed in the Dalí Museum—ideally concludes this series of exhibitions, each of which has offered a different reading of Dalí in the light of contemporary sensibilities. The artist’s position at the intersection of these perspectives testifies to his almost unique position in the cultural landscape and, at the same time, demonstrates the infinite number of possible interpretations of his work.

The Palazzo Reale exhibition unfolds along a single thread: chronologically. By exploring its boundaries, it reveals how many of Bolton’s dear themes resurface, as well as those explored by the Victoria and Albert Museum. Internal research provided an even broader picture of the artist’s relationship with the history of fashion, demonstrating how Surrealism, despite being the aspect most immediately associated with his name, actually represents only a part of his involvement in this universe.

Gala Dali wearing Shoe Hat and Lips Jacket, designed by
Elsa Schiaparelli in collaboration with Salvador Dalí, 1938Photo: Marçal Folch

The exhibition opens with Dalí’s own reflections, drawn from the book The Secret Life of Dalí, and the gradual process through which the artist constructed his image. Initially modeled on his moods, it later crystallized into the look we all know: the upturned mustache, the cowboy shirt, the cape, the cane. The exhibition explores Dalí’s involvement in the complex mechanisms of fashion creation and promotion: from textile design to advertising campaigns, from shop windows to Vogue cover shoots, to the artist’s role as guest editor or dynamic model before the camera.

The exhibition also explores his relationship with four emblematic figures from the fashion world. It traces his close relationship with Gabrielle Chanel—from the collaboration on the costumes for the ballet Bacchanale to their stay at La Pausa, the designer’s villa on the French Riviera; his partnership with Christian Dior on the costumes for the famous Beistegui Ball in Venice in 1951; his friendship with Paco Rabanne; and finally, his collaborations with Elsa Schiaparelli, which produced some of the most iconic dresses and accessories in the history of twentieth-century fashion.

“The Spectre of Sex Appeal,” Salvador Dalí (1932).Photo: Marçal Folch-Fotogasull SL