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Lot Essay
Robert and Nicolas Descharnes have confirmed the authenticity of this work.
Executed in the early 1970s, La Pieta was originally conceived as part of a large stained-glass ceiling in the Teatro-Museo Dalí in Figueres, Spain, inaugurated in 1974. Swiss publisher Jacques Carpentier published a suite of fourteen lithographs representing various parts of this original work; to these Dalí added another ten images and released all in 1974 as Les Vitraux suite.
La Pieta is centered upon the figure of Jesus as envisioned by Michaelangelo, draped across the lap of Mary after the crucifixion. An incredibly powerful theme, it is one that Dalí revisited throughout his life, culminating in an extraordinary 1980 canvas that remains a highlight in the collection of the Teatro-Museo Dalí. In the current work angels ascend to the brilliant light emanating from the center of the composition, while melting clocks note the passing of time, forcing the viewer to suspend their notion of scientific reality. Dalí himself presides over the scene in the form of five faces in profile tethered to the radiating nucleus.
Executed in the early 1970s, La Pieta was originally conceived as part of a large stained-glass ceiling in the Teatro-Museo Dalí in Figueres, Spain, inaugurated in 1974. Swiss publisher Jacques Carpentier published a suite of fourteen lithographs representing various parts of this original work; to these Dalí added another ten images and released all in 1974 as Les Vitraux suite.
La Pieta is centered upon the figure of Jesus as envisioned by Michaelangelo, draped across the lap of Mary after the crucifixion. An incredibly powerful theme, it is one that Dalí revisited throughout his life, culminating in an extraordinary 1980 canvas that remains a highlight in the collection of the Teatro-Museo Dalí. In the current work angels ascend to the brilliant light emanating from the center of the composition, while melting clocks note the passing of time, forcing the viewer to suspend their notion of scientific reality. Dalí himself presides over the scene in the form of five faces in profile tethered to the radiating nucleus.