Page 14 - Sandy Jackman Pantai Hotel

shapes, his labor of love
rendered color, sometimes
working with a brush that had
a single hair.
Dali’s etchings reflect move-
ment and spontaneity. When
he worked with the copper
plates, the stylist would
sometimes slip. Dali found it
difficult to manage; however,
he mastered this challenge
by drawing rapidly in a vis-
ceral and confident manner.
We can see this when we
look at one of my favorites,
“Les Femme-Fleurs au Pia-
no” from the Hippies Series.
It is a formal painting of two
elegant female hippies in the
foreground and a piano lyri-
cally draped over the arms of
one of the women. We see
characters in the background
representing fun and humor-
ous concepts as, I imagine,
one woman gazes off into
the distance, while the other
gazes at us, the audience -
the “experiencer.” Mdm Argil-
let said that Dali liked to paint
flowers replacing hair on top
of women’s heads; such a
rare and delicate representa-
tion in his work.

I asked what she thought Dali might say about the use of the computer in
art today. She thought he would be up for it. She said that he would meet
with scientists and philosophers, exploring concepts and ideas, as well as
14 techniques. He would experiment by pushing the boundaries with etchings
through the use of different tools and mediums such as squid ink, and
holograms. She felt he would have explored with today’s technical medium.
“He had a huge interest for anything going on at the time, and was so
interested in the screen idea that he sketched one of our etchings which
was done of a bullfight with a television set (1966). And you would see a
very large screen and a monster with a very strange and soft shape which
encompasses the screen where there is a bull in the background,” she said.
“So I think he was very conscious of that. He made many works on
holograms. His last two paintings were where you would see one object
and then you would see them in relief. So he had this three-dimensional
research also. I remember that when I went to one of his big exhibitions in
Paris in 1981, I was thinking these paintings look like they are the paintings
of a young artist.”
Madame Argillet is a force in her own right: Celebrating her father and his
work with the great Dali; educating us on Dadaism and Surrealism, both of
which have influenced our creative content for decades, and managing ex-
hibitions of Dali’s work around the world. She serves as the whole of these
two great icons, together, embodying within herself. When asked if she
had any parting suggestions for emerging artists trying to get a foothold in
the market today, her response was, “Just dare!” What appropriate advice
coming from “Le Petite Infante” who did not lose herself in the labyrinth of
her father and Dali, but grew with them into such an extraordinary adult as
well as curator of their work. Thank you for sharing this exhibition with us,
Mdm Argillet, the world of art is better for it.

Please join us and Mdm Argillet as we celebrate her father and Dali. The
Argillet Collection will exhibit at Meyer’s Fine Art Gallery: A rare collec-
tion of etchings entitled "Songs of Maldoror"; 50 etchings by Dali, done
between 1934 and 1973. A project drawing for one of the etchings, which
is a Museum piece, will also be in the exhibition. The Songs of Maldoror
have only been exhibited once before, in a four-month exhibit at the Los
Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and this upcoming presentation
in San Diego will include the opportunity to see this rare collection and to
acquire it as well.