Mountain Lake by Salvador Dalí

Mountain Lake 1938

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Dimensions: support: 730 x 921 mm frame: 1018 x 1205 x 84 mm

Copyright: © Salvador Dali, Gala-Salvador Dali Foundation/DACS, London 2014 | CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate

Curator: Well, this is Dalí's "Mountain Lake," currently residing at the Tate. It's undated, which adds to its mystique. It strikes me as a landscape where the subconscious bleeds into reality, and the telephone, perched so precariously, seems almost like a forgotten connection. Editor: It feels oppressive, almost claustrophobic, despite the expanse of the lake. That murky green sky... is that supposed to be comforting? It’s more like a prelude to a bad dream. Curator: Absolutely, it’s unsettling. The telephone, of course, is a recurring motif in Dalí's work, often symbolizing broken communication or frustrated desire. Here, it feels disconnected, perhaps even a little menacing against that backdrop. Editor: I'd argue that the isolation is key. Who is Dalí calling? Or, more pointedly, who isn’t answering? Is the broken telephone a metaphor for political isolation, considering the rise of totalitarian regimes during Dalí's time? Curator: It's quite possible. Dalí was certainly attuned to the anxieties of his era. But perhaps it’s also a broader commentary on the human condition, our perpetual struggle to connect, even when surrounded by the sublime indifference of nature. Editor: Perhaps. Ultimately, the painting leaves me with more questions than answers, which I suppose is the mark of a truly surreal piece. Curator: Indeed, it's a window into Dalí's unique perspective, a world where the familiar is rendered strange and the mundane becomes imbued with a sense of profound unease.

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tate about 1 month ago

http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/dali-mountain-lake-t01979

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tate about 1 month ago

Mountain Lake demonstrates Dalí’s use of the multiple image: the lake can simultaneously be seen as a fish. By such doubling he sought to challenge rationality. The painting combines personal and public references. His parents visited this lake after the death of their first child, also called Salvador. Dalí seems to have been haunted by the death of his namesake brother whom he never knew. The disconnected telephone brings the image into the present by alluding to negotiations between Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, and Hitler over the German annexation of the Sudetenland in September 1938. Gallery label, December 2005