Salvador Dalí:
The Magician Of Colour
An excerpt from a speech given by the Spanish heir-apparent, the Crown
Prince Felipe of Asturias, on the occasion of the exhibition "Salvador
Dalí - A Royal Collection" in the Museum of European Art
at the Noervenich Castle near Cologne in July 1991, in cooperation
with the government of the Federal Republic of Germany:
"It is an honour for me to open the Salvador Dali exhibition
at the Museum of European Art.
This brilliant man was born in Spain. He lived in France and in the
United States. He is a cosmopolitan. His artistic achievements are
well known and discussed all over the world.
It is understandable, therefore, if the friends of his art emphasize
that this magician of colours, born in Figueras, belongs not to Spain
or to Europe alone, but has admirers the world over.
Naturally it is a great joy for Spain that Salvador Dali is the most
widely recognized artistic personality to emerge from this sun-filled
country in southern Europe during the twentieth century. Recall, too,
the other renowned artists of modern classicism. Our country is vital
enough to produce worthy contributors to the cultural development
of a united, free and peaceful Europe in the future as well.
The exhibition is under the aegis of German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich
Genscher. We owe him and the German government our heartfelt gratitude
for their commitment to culture. Our appreciation and support also
belong to those who worked to make this exhibition of Salvador Dali's
graphic masterworks possible: first of all, to the House of Bodenstein
at the Noervenich Castle and to you, John Gilbert Bodenstein.
The friends of his art will receive real joy from this further look
into Dali's enormous artistic achievement. Those who are not yet very
familiar with Dali's work will be able to make exciting discoveries
in his pictures and his meanings.
It is our innermost wish to promote the power of art to unify nations,
and in so doing, to contribute to a united Europe."
Portrait
Salvador Dalí and "Soft watches"
