A Dalinian year of successes and international projection

The Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation has experienced a particularly active 2024, with a notable push in the artistic and museum fields. The balance sheet presented on Friday 23 May by the president of the institution, Jordi Mercader , confirms this: taking advantage of the 50th anniversary of the Dalí Theatre-Museum, a wide range of exhibition activities, research projects and collaborations have been carried out. The event was also attended by the general director, Fèlix Roca , the director of the Dalí Museums, Montse Aguer , and the general secretary, Isabella Kleinjung .

2024 has closed with the best results in the history of the Foundation: 1,005,073 visitors to the museums of the Dalinian triangle, more than 3.5 million visitors accumulated to international immersive exhibitions and a record surplus of 7.6 million euros . As Mercader explained, part of this surplus will be allocated to an ambitious cultural program that will explore the connections between art, science, culture and thought, in tune with the intellectual universe of Salvador Dalí. The project will have the collaboration of prominent scientific institutions in Barcelona. In addition, a scholarship program will be promoted to promote the study and dissemination of the Dalinian legacy, both of his work and his ideas.

Salvador Dalí pintant el cartell que anuncia les obres del Teatre-Museu (1970)

During the year, the Figueres museum has hosted exhibitions such as The Dalí Theatre-Museum. A Living Organism or The Soft Photographic Device, which have allowed us to delve into new perspectives on the work of the painter from Empordà. A piece from his surrealist period has also been incorporated, The Birth of Liquid Anxieties, which is part of the story of My Favorite Painters. In Púbol, the castle has been holding a series of exhibitions with its own perspective and with special attention to the figure of Gala. All this, with a program that has included documentaries, round tables and performing arts.

Exposició 'El despertar del mite. Gala Dalí' a Púbol. © EP

Internationally, immersive exhibitions have reached around fifteen countries, while the Centre for Dalinian Studies has continued its work of research, publication and collaboration in European projects of sculptural conservation. In terms of conservation, a broad plan has been developed that has included the restoration of emblematic pieces in Figueres, such as The Labyrinth Curtain and Apotheosis of the Dollar, haute couture pieces in Púbol and outdoor works in Portlligat. Progress has also been made on the technical documentation for the future catalogue raisonné.

2024 was also the year of the acquisition of the Casa Giralt Ventolà , which will allow the spaces intended for museum and administrative use to be expanded by 1,200 m². In addition, the rehabilitation of the Lògies del Teatre-Museu , the office building and the central warehouse was also carried out. Investments that clearly point to a desire to consolidate the growth of the institution also from a logistical and infrastructure point of view.

Apoteosi del dòlar, Salvador Dalí (1965).

A 2025 to delve deeper into Dali's legacy

As for 2025, on June 5, the publication DALÍ, published by Taschen, will be presented in Barcelona, a limited edition of 10,000 copies, which offers an updated chronology of Salvador Dalí's life, accompanied by the pictorial work and an exhaustive selection of documents and photographs by the Foundation's Center for Dalinian Studies. This volume becomes the definitive monograph on the artist and a reference work that seeks to condense the vital and creative legacy of the genius from Empordà. The Dalí News magazine is also being revived, with contributions from contemporary authors from various fields, maintaining that interdisciplinary spirit that characterized Dalí. This new edition, promoted on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the original publication that the artist himself self-published during his American period, brings together articles by prominent figures in the artistic, philosophical and scientific fields.

In September, one of the most representative works of his mystical stage, The Madonna of Portlligat, will arrive from Japan to Figueres. With it, the artist begins his stage known as "nuclear mysticism", where art, spirituality and scientific research converge, and where he draws on references such as Raphael and Piero della Francesca. An exhibition is also being prepared in October at the Museo del Corso in Rome, Salvador Dalí. Revolution and tradition, coinciding with the jubilee year and which will focus on the painter's connections with figures such as Raphael, Vermeer, Velázquez and Picasso.