Disney & Dali: Architects of the Imagination

[Drunk Monk]

Technically this is an exhibit book, not a regular book like we've been reviewing here, but I want to try posting from my new Surface Pro.  It gives a cursory overview of the parallel lives of Disney and Dali, then includes copies of some of their correspondences, and ends with Destino, which was the most interesting part.  There were plenty of sketches and paintings that I've never seen, including several storyboards and some great photos of Dali working on the project.  It's a shame that Disney bailed on it.  His son completed it and even though it got an Academy nom, I never felt it had the same essence.  Disney would've had it hand drawn in the manner of Fantasia, not a CGI thing, which somehow cheapened the vision. But it was a fun catalog and will sit well in my Dali library.

[Greg]

Will you be picking up the CDC poster that shows who can wear the face masks over the different types of facial hair? One of the facial hair types is the 'Dali'

[cranefly]

I've had my beard since my 20s.  That may soon be coming to an end.  Though it's nice to know there are some facial hair options.

Been leaning towards the toothbrush, which looks efficient and easy to maintain, but I don't see many people sporting that style these days.

[Greg]

For some reason that one fell out of favor. Have you considered villain?

[cranefly]

For some reason that one fell out of favor. Have you considered villain?

Hmmm.  Villain looks promising.  But it warns about being careful not to cross the seal.

Just what I need, a bunch of angry seals after me.

So I might go with Lampshade, because I'm thinking it'll also serve to protect me from gaslighting.

Gotta think these things through carefully, you know...

[Greg]

Fashion for health!

[Drunk Monk]

Saw that.  It was one of the first things our gov put out about this.  That and thoughts & prayers. 

It bugged me at first that my particular beard is not described.  Then later, I thought it was kinda cool.

The closest to me is the Imperial, but it would have to be straighter without the mustache.  

I've had my beard for years now.  It hides a keyloid scar.  There's research that having a beard builds your immune system in a similar fashion to having a dog.  

The thing that is overlooked is that facial hair can be tucked in the mask.  

Gotta hand it to Dali to have his own distinctive moustache.  When he was unearthed recently for a DNA test involving a dumb lawsuit, his stache was still intact.

[Drunk Monk]

so many dali posts.  it's as if some of us here are obssessed.  

ARTS & LIFE
Thrift Store Wood Engraving Print Turns Out To Be Salvador Dalí Artwork

March 10, 20208:39 PM ET

VANESSA ROMO
Twitter
[img=575x0]https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2020/03/10/dali-painting-555b2c7f9e31db303351026b1a85d8cbe455e0b6-s1200-c85.jpg[/img]
The wood engraving print is part of a series of 100 images illustrating The Divine Comedy, by Dante Alleghieri.
WAVY TV
It's pretty much the thrift store dream; to find a rare, long lost treasure on a crowded tchotchke shelf, on sale for a bargain price.
That's what happened at the Hotline Pink Thrift Shop in Kitty Hawk, N.C., when Wendy Hawkins came across an otherwise ignored piece of art.
"One day I saw this, with a bunch of other paintings lined up on the floor, and I said 'this is old, this is something special,' " Hawkins, who volunteers at the store twice a week, told WAVY TV.
It was priced somewhere between $10 to $50 dollars.
The item turned out to be a 1950s woodcut print that was created and signed by Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. It is part of a series of 100 illustrations depicting Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy, a 14th century Italian poem about the writer's fictional journey from the deepest circles of hell, up the mountain of purgatory and finally to paradise.
[img=575x0]https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2020/03/10/ap_04061806834-1-_custom-3c7994efe2a70d46ad5c60a9ec2d0dba5016881a-s1200-c85.jpg[/img]
Spanish, painter and graphic artist Salvador Dali sported the 10-past-10 position mustache for decades.
AP
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Dalí was a contemporary of Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro and the French writer Andre Breton, who prized the expression of the unconscious above all else — what they called a surreality. The eccentric artist became best known for his melting-clock paintings and is easily recognized by his stiff upturned mustache, which remained so perfectly styled that even nearly 30 years after his death it remained in its classic 10-past-10 position.
Dalí was initially commissioned by the Italian government to make the series in honor Dante's birthday celebration but outrage over a Spaniard taking on an Italian poet's work led officials to drop it. However, the artist had become so taken by the project that he couldn't let it go. In the end he created a series of 100 watercolor paintings — one for each chapter of Dante's book — that were reproduced as wood engravings. Each of those required about 35 separate blocks to complete the image
"And that is what Wendy found," Melanie Smith told NPR.
It's called Purgatory Canto 32 and it shows a woman in blue next to a man in red.
Smith owns the Seaside Art Gallery in Nags Head just down the street from the thrift store. She was the first person Hawkins consulted to learn more about what she'd discovered.
"I researched and researched and researched and just when I would ask myself, 'Do I think I have this right?' I would go out and research some more," Smith, who's been inundated with phone calls since the discovery, said laughing.
In all, Smith said she worked on authenticating the piece for over a week. "I needed to get permission to take it out of the frame, which was old and dusty, to take a closer look because it is very rare to find something like this at a thrift store."
"Dalí is very difficult to authenticate because there's so many nuances with his work," Smith explained. He also authorized a ton of prints, which he sometimes signed.
Once Smith was convinced it was an actual Dalí original, she helped sell it. It went for $1,200 to a couple who plan to take it out of the gallery later this week. She said part of what made it so valuable is that it bears two signatures — once with a wood stamp and once in handwriting with a purple pencil.
It is unclear who would give up such a valuable art piece and it seems that employees at Hotline Pink Thrift Ship may never find out.
Michael Lewis, director of the charity that runs the shop, told the local TV station they don't have any records of the donation, adding items are often dropped off in the middle of the night.
Proceeds from the sale of the print will go to a nonprofit that supports a shelter for runaway teens and victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.