“At last I am going to be born!” “Let me be the first fore-precursor of that Renaissance!”
Salvador Dalí
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One month after its inauguration on October 10th, the Galeries Bartoux Venice has asserted itself as an essential new cultural hub in the city of Venice.
This opening marks the official debut of the Galeries Bartoux group’s first Italian headquarters, a major achievement in bringing the “Bartoux Experience” to La Serenissima.
Housed in a breathtaking 1.200 square-meter space obtained through the meticulous, two-year restoration of the former Accademia Cinema and the adjacent Scarpa antique shop, the gallery is a triumph of architectural preservation and modern vision.
Titled “Dalí è Venezia”, the exhibition is realised in collaboration with Dalí Universe and features a significant selection of artworks from the Dalí Universe Collection complemented by the immersive film re-imagining Venice through Dalí’s eye.
The presence of the Dalí Universe Collection is a definitive statement about the gallery’s philosophical vision. Dalí, who adored Italy and famously argued that the path forward for art was to “return to Classicism” and affirm an “aesthetic faith”, is perfectly positioned here.
Dalí viewed the Renaissance masters as products of a “technique now disappeared”, the only reply to the “incapacity to observe things” that he saw affecting post-war artists.
This pursuit of technique and divine proportion is manifest in the imposing bronzes that command the space of the art gallery:
The mighty Space Elephant (2 metres in height) has spindly, near-invisible legs, symbols of lightness and conquest, and seems to defy gravity, striding across the centuries.
The figures of Adam and Eve (2 metres tall) and Saint George and the Dragon (1.5 metres tall) anchor the monumental exhibit in myth and religious narrative.
A particular highlight is the pairing of the equestrian figures, Surrealist Warrior (1.70 metres in height) and Lady Godiva with Butterflies (2 metres tall). This juxtaposition allows the public to examine Dalí’s profound fascination with the horse, a figure he studied extensively, notably through the drawings and works of Leonardo da Vinci.
The Surrealist Warrior, inspired by the Sun King Louis XIV, stands arrested in a victory salute; its spiritual dimension revealed by a striking window of light piercing the chest, a profound metaphor for the Catalan artist’s belief that “heaven could be found in the heart of the man who believes”.
Beside him, Lady Godiva with Butterflies is transformed into a vision of liberated femininity. Her body is adorned with four fluttering butterflies, powerful Dalinian symbols of the soul, infinite transformations, and rebirth.
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The limited edition of the Dalí Universe Collection provides an intimate counterpoint to the museal works, featuring exquisite bronze pieces like Woman of Time, Triumphant Angel, and Homage to Fashion.
Among these artworks, the sculpture that immediately captures the visitor’s attention is the Space Venus, Dalí’s homage to the female figure. This iconic sculpture, adorned with a soft watch, ants, and an egg, takes on an ethereal quality due to its distinctive blue patina.
Chosen to perfectly integrate with the colours and atmospheres of the Venetian lagoon, the Space Venus offers a beautiful, living connection to the city. Its soft watch, draped over the torso, delivers Dalí’s dual message: “The beauty of the flesh is temporary and will vanish, while beauty of art is timeless and eternal”.
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Dalí’s love for Italy was profound. It is perhaps no exaggeration to say that, without this direct contact with Italy, Dalí’s art would have been different.
The exhibition “Dalí è Venezia” offers a unique opportunity to fall in love with a Dalí in a distinctly Venetian guise, an ardent admirer of Italian culture, the Renaissance, and Classicism. The exhibition reveals the multi-faceted nature of his personality and his fervent desire to be “the first fore-precursor of a new Renaissance!”
Still today, the works of the Master of Surrealism continue to amaze, inspire, and fascinate everyone who stops to look.
The exhibition “Dalí è Venezia” at the Galeries Bartoux Venice is an event that invites visitors to fully appreciate the complex and masterful personality of one of the greatest visionaries of the 20th century.
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GALERIES BARTOUX IN VENICE
https://www.galeries-bartoux.com/en/galeries-bartoux-in-venice/
Cover image: https://www.galeries-bartoux.com/en/venise-galeries-bartoux-reveille-lame-du-cinema-de-laccademia/