It has not been few the times that Barcelona has debated whether to recognize the work and creativity of Salvador Dalí, either by dedicating a street or square to him, or some sculptural work. All have failed. The last occasion, in 2021. Political motivations aside, the long bureaucracy, the urban complexity of the city, and the prioritization of other criteria in the nomenclature have stopped it.
Read more The Venice Film Festival is dedicated to political cinema
But finally, a lasting recognition now arrives in the city. Dalí settles in Barcelona. It will be from September 16 and by the hand of the digital creation studio Layers of Reality together with the Fundació Gala-Dalí in the form of an exhibition at the Amatller house, right on Passeig de Gràcia. It will be called Dalí Boulevard Cibernètic and aims to be permanent and show the public the artist’s own and historical objects.
Moreover, it will also make use of the most advanced technology to digitally reproduce in high resolution, for example, some of the most well-known jewels he designed, or to provide an immersive experience in which for 24 minutes the visitor will be completely immersed in Dalí’s work and the background of his most emblematic paintings will be revealed: from nuclear and quantum physics to geometry or the structure of DNA.
This digitalization suits Dalí like no other. He embraced with fervor the technological boom of the second half of the 20th century, was behind three-dimensional artistic creations, and was a pioneer in the holographic field. A good example is Poliedro, basketball players transforming into angels (1972).
The proposal will be located a few meters from where the artist from Figueres exhibited solo for the first time
In any case, the 1,200 square meters that the Amatller house provides for Layers of Reality to undertake this project coincides with a singular fact: one hundred and one years ago Dalí managed to exhibit solo for the first time (not as part of a collective exhibition, of several authors) his work at the Galeries Dalmau. It was from November 14 to 27, 1925, in a space a few meters from the Amatller house, on the other side of Passeig de Gràcia. At that time Dalí was 21 years old and showed 17 oils and five drawings. The painter’s connection with Barcelona, then, is important. From then on, the artist did not stop exhibiting individually all over the world.
Read more US Army Chief Resigns After Months of Tensions with Hegseth
The proposal by Layers of Reality recovers much of the experience already undertaken in 2022 under the name Dalí Cibernètic at the Ideal Centre d’Arts Digitals in Barcelona (which currently and temporarily is located at the Fira de Barcelona, awaiting the reopening of the renovated facilities located in Poblenou). The experience has toured different cities around the world, such as Berlin, Copenhagen, Athens, Thessaloniki, London, Lisbon, Riyadh, Tel Aviv, Bruges, Leipzig, or Warsaw.
Also read
This world tour has ended up settling permanently now in Barcelona, but with the 2022 proposal renewed, updated, and remastered according to the potential that technology offers today, especially regarding the immersive part. Also in the virtual reality metaverse, where the visitor, while sailing by boat, will contemplate the landscapes imagined by Dalí.
The whole makes the project be called Dalí Boulevard Cibernètic . A name change justified because more than 50% of the exhibition will be newly created. Here there is an effort to explain to the public Dalí’s relationship with different aspects, such as fashion and design, but also predictions and future actions. In this regard, Dalí predicted some techno-accessories and digital clothing ( wearables ).
‘Dalí Boulevard Cibernètic’, by Layers of Reality and the Fundació Gala-Dalí, opens on September 16
Some of them he designed. That said, they are faithful to his crazy character, like the rhinoceros-shaped shoes that play music when walking, or the silky turquoise dress that he designed with Christian Dior for the woman of the year 2045, with a headpiece shaped like an antenna. The dress will be reproduced in the exhibition, as well as one designed together with Paco Rabanne; of the shoes, the design from the artist’s mind will be shown. The exhibition will also feature some original pieces, such as a cane that Dalí used as a crutch.
