On the weekend I finally went to see the Salvador Dali: Liquid Desire exhibition which is currently on show in Melbourne at the NGV (National Gallery of Victoria) & quite frankly I was blown away!
This weeks WWW is from a series of photographs inspired by Dali’s own painting Leda Atomica titled Dali Atomicus (1948) & was photographed by Philippe Halsman. Strangely enough, probably the thing that I like most about this photo is how it was taken; Halsman, “suspended an easel, two paintings by Dali (one of which was “Leda Atomica”), and a stepping stool; had his wife, Yvonne, hold a chair in the air; on the count of three, his assistants threw three cats and a bucket of water into the air; and on the count of four, Dali jumped and Halsman snapped the picture. While his assistants mopped the floor and consoled the cats, Halsman went to the darkroom, developed the film, and reemerged to do it again. ‘Six hours and twenty-eight throws later, the result satisfied my striving for perfection,’ wrote Halsman.” (Source)
The exhibition itself was extremely enjoyable & suffice to say downright inspiring. Due to its popularity, be prepared to wait in queue for close to an hour but nevermind, a little conversation & a nearby coffee stand will keep you busy whilst you wait. As ever the NGV has done a great job of not only entertaining through art, but also educating - I certainly learnt a lot about the artist himself as well as his art - the techniques he used, the different mediums he worked with (paint, photography, sculpture, film etc) & most importantly to me - the inspiration behind his own works which helped develop my own understanding of the pieces whilst working towards me having a greater appreciation for Dali’s art.
For further details on NGV hours of operation & ticket prices go here.
Click image to enlarge.
