Melting Clocks, Elephants, and Dali

Another week of drawing. This time, I studied Salvador Dali, who I would say is one of the most well-known surrealists of the past century. I chose to study him because of his eccentric work, which also, as I learned, matched his eccentric personality. Unlike some artists, who might avoid the public and keep to themselves, Dali used every ploy he could think of to attract the attention of people, and was self-centered and very, well... confident. For example, Dali studied at the Academy of Arts in Madrid, but was kicked out after refusing to complete his final exams, arguing that the professors judging him were not qualified, as he, Dali, possessed more knowledge and skill than them.

This personality may have been developed from his childhood, which was a relatively positive experience for him. Salvador Dali’s mother encouraged him to explore art and be creative, and this was most likely a factor in building his imagination, which would lead to his ultimate success. I know from the brain unit that the brain is experiencing major developmental stages throughout one’s childhood, and studies have shown that it is easier to excel at a certain activity if one is exposed to it at a young age. Dali was fortunate for this, but his adolescence ended with a tragic event when his mother died of cancer when Dali was only a teenager.

It must have been hard, but the artist managed to survive, and went on to become one of the leaders of the surrealist art movement. In 1931, Dali painted what is perhaps his most famous painting, the Persistence of Memory (If that didn’t ring a bell, it’s the one with the melting clocks).

Looking through his work, I noticed that Dali uses certain subjects in multiple pieces, similar to what MC Escher did. Clocks, for instance, appear in the above painting, as well as Soft Watch at the Moment of First Explosion. Obviously, this object became immensely famous, and is probably common knowledge in many parts of the world. I even have a clock styled after these melting clocks!

I decided to practice some of the different subjects that I had seen in Dali’s work. Of course, the melting clocks were the first component I drew.

Then, I noticed that Salvador Dali featured elephants in a number of his pieces, which always had unusually long legs, or maybe they're on stilts:

So, I tried to emulate this style.

Finally, I further practiced hands, which I am beginning to understand, little by little. In an attempt to use Dali’s style, I drew a hand that appeared to be melting, which, although unsuccessful in my eyes, will be a part of my final product.

Overall, I would say that Dali has taught me some lessons, both positive and negative. I learned that expressing your imagination is a great way to develop your creativity, which is really the most important part of a drawing. Furthermore, this creativity will eventually allow you to have a distinct style that sets you apart from the rest of the world. These three artists, MC Escher, Salvador Dali, and Katsuchika Hokusai, who I will be looking at in the future, are easily told apart. And that is where I want to be someday, both able to be pointed out by my work, and famous enough to be compared to these great men.


Sources:

http://10awesome.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/The_Persistence_of_Memory_Salvador_Dali1.jpg

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEEr6LQKIKCVj0Okwyy6Rymb9fIgj95t5oRipa81vS9lqHYE69TXSCRiPCQG4tR5pHkWz1PcJK6Sq7c78ayPRN-m-QAW_wZIJkuWfEuqd5k3TqpsXX7ZtLR5koIVpUFtTOstFSsJQxPo4/s1600/Dali-Elephants.jpg

http://www.artquotes.net/masters/salvador-dali/biography.htm

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/dali.html