© Philippe Halsman
Salvador Dalí, born Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech on May 11, 1904, in Figueres, Spain, and passed away on January 23, 1989, in the same town, was a Spanish painter, sculptor, writer, and filmmaker, and an iconic figure of the Surrealist movement. Dalí studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Madrid, where he began to develop his distinctive artistic style. Dalí is famous for his dreamlike and fantastical works, marked by exceptional technical precision and boundless imagination. His paintings, such as "The Persistence of Memory" (1931), featuring the famous melting clocks, have become icons of Surrealism. Dalí explored themes such as dreams, sexuality, religion, and science, often using personal symbols and hallucinatory images. In addition to painting, Dalí worked in various other media, including sculpture, film, and photography. He collaborated with notable figures such as Luis Buñuel, with whom he made the film "Un Chien Andalou" (1929), and Walt Disney, with whom he created the animated short film "Destino" (1946). Dalí's work is marked by his eccentricity and flair for the dramatic, making him a media figure and international celebrity. He founded the Dalí Theatre-Museum in Figueres, which houses a vast collection of his works and has become a major tourist attraction. Salvador Dalí remains one of the most famous and influential artists of the 20th century, celebrated for his ability to merge art and life into a unique surreal vision.