$ (USD)
Need some help

My personalised recommendations
- My favourite artworks
- My favourite artists
- My favourite galleries
- Recommended for you
Loading...

Salvador Dali

L'escargot et l'ange, 1984

$ 30,150

Salvador Dali L'escargot et l'ange, 1984

Name: L'escargot et l'ange
Brand: Artsper
SKU: 815007
Price: 30150 EUR
Availability: InStock

Ask more pictures

$USD 30,150

Have a question? Ask a specialist

Learn more about our buyer's policy protection

LOADING NOT DISPLAYED BLUR TEXT
Second NOT DISPLAYED BLUR TEXT

Try the artwork out for free for 14 days

The artwork is available for pickup from the gallery in Paris, France

Add to my favourites

Galerie Dali Paris

Paris, France

Artsper seller since 2019

Vetted Seller Our team of world-wide experts approves every sellers.

Would you like to see more pictures of this artwork?

Specify which details of the work you would like and we will be in touch as soon as possible.

cancel

About the work

Medium

Sculpture : bronze, marble
Dimensions cm | inch

44 x 60 x 35 cm 17.3 x 23.6 x 13.8 inch
Display

The sculpture cannot be displayed outdoors
Type

Numbered and limited to 350 copies
1 remaining copy
Authenticity

Work sold with an invoice from the gallery
and a certificate of authenticity
Signature

Artwork signed in the mold
About the artwork

Artwork sold in perfect condition

The snail occupies an important place in the Dalinian universe, as it is intimately connected with Sigmund Freud, whom Dalí came to regard as his spiritual father. Dalí was surrounded by psychoanalytical influences and theories of the subconscious were incorporated into his art. Dalí longed to meet Freud and once sketched his head with the likeness of a snail, in the form of a spiral symbolizing “a morphological secret”.

When he finally met his idol, he was struck by a specific scene near Freud’s house; on the saddle of a bicycle was a red hot water bottle on which crawled a snail!

Dalí was obsessed with snails, they were a fetish of his and a source of inspiration for his artistic oeuvre. Apart from being one of his favorite foods, he was fascinated by the natural geometry of their shells and the idea of duality: hard exterior and soft interior, just like the egg and the lobster.
Dalí adds a surrealist touch to the sculpture; paradoxically, the snail, universal symbol of the idle passing of time, has been granted wings, and is seen here riding rapidly on waves.
An angel lands softly on its back, bestowing the gift of swift movement. This messenger acts as an intermediary between real and imaginary worlds and holds triumphantly a crutch, another important Dalinian symbol.

The snail’s languid pace contrasts with the angel’s speedy flight; a sharp distinction is also drawn between the ponderous movement of the snail and the agile gracefulness of the angel.
Read more

Delivery

Artsper's galleries deliver artworks worldwide, and using specialised carriers. The artwork is available for pickup from the gallery in Paris, France or can be delivered to the address of your choice within 4 to 5 weeks after validation of your order. The work is insured during transport, so it's risk-free.
Origin: France
Find out more about delivery

Free return

You have 14 days to find the perfect spot for your artwork. If you change your mind, you can send it back free of charge, and we'll reimburse you.
Find out more about free return

Payment

You can pay by credit and debit card, PayPal or bank transfer only in euros. We take fraud very seriously and respect your confidential information, which is why all payments are subject to 3D Secure validation.
Find out more about payment

Guarantee

Artsper's pledge of quality: We only work with professional galleries and guarantee the authenticity and provenance of our artworks.
Find out more about Artsper guarantee

Want to go further?

Collector’s Guide

Themes: Nude, Animal

Colours: Sculpture Green

Artist

Tags:

snail

Salvador Dali

Spain Born in: 1904 Bestsellers Masterpieces

Salvador Dalí, in full Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dalí y Domenech, was born May 11, 1904, in Figueras, Spain, and died on January 23, 1989. This Spanish surrealist painter and printmaker was known for his explorations of subconscious imagery.

As an art student in Madrid and Barcelona, Dalí absorbed a number of artistic styles and displayed unusual technical dexterity as a painter. It was not until the late 1920s that two events brought about the development of his mature artistic style. First, his discovery of Sigmund Freud's writings on the erotic significance of subconscious imagery. Second, his affiliation with the Paris Surrealists, a group of artists and writers who sought to establish a “greater reality" of the human subconscious over reason. To evoke images from his subconscious mind, Dalí partook in self-induced hallucinatory states, a process he described as “paranoiac-critical".

Upon Dalí establishing this method, his painting style matured at an extraordinary rate. Thanks to René Magritte and Joan Miró, from 1929 to 1937, Dalí had produced the artworks that had earned him the title of the world's best-known Surrealist artist. He depicted a dream world in which commonplace objects are juxtaposed, deformed, or otherwise metamorphosed in a bizarre and irrational manner.

The famous artist dabbled in other media as well. Alongside Spanish director Luis Buñuel, Dalí made two Surrealist films—Un Chien Andalou (1928; An Andalusian Dog) and L'Âge d'Or (1930; The Golden Age)—that are similarly filled with grotesque but highly suggestive images. Dalí also wrote books; perhaps the most interesting and revealing being The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí (1942-44).

By the late 1930s, Dalí switched to painting in a more academic style under the influence of the Renaissance painter Raphael. By doing so, he was consequently expelled from the Surrealist movement. Thereafter, he spent much of his time designing theatre sets, fashionable shop interiors, jewelry, as well as exhibiting his genius for flamboyant self-promotional stunts in the United States, where he lived from 1940 to 1955.

From 1950 to 1970, Dalí painted many works with religious themes, although he continued to explore erotic subjects, childhood memories, and themes surrounding his wife, Gala. Despite their technical accomplishments, Dalí's later paintings are not as highly regarded as his earlier works.