Dali Museum
Website: www.thedali.org
One Dali Blvd.
St. Petersburg, FL
Dali Museum
It’s a cloudy day and no one is interested in going to the beach or playing golf. It’s the perfect opportunity to take a day trip and explore another area of the Gulf Coast region. Pack the children in the car and drive about 45 minutes north to St. Petersburg, Florida. Here you will find one of the most intriguing art museums in the country.
The Dali Museum is located at in St. Petersburg. The late surrealist, Salvador Dali, rose to fame by painting outlandish, dreamlike imagery. His paintings of melting clocks, anatomical anomalies and photographic precision can be seen in this 2,800 square foot museum. It holds the largest permanent collection of Dali works in the United States and features ninety five oil paintings, including six of Dali’s eighteen large masterpieces. Probably the most famous of the larger works is his nine-foot-tall ‘The Hallucinogenic Toreador,’ a majestic and wild synthesis of Spanish heritage and personal exploration. The painting employs the double imagery technique Dali popularized, which allows the viewer to see different forms when shifting perspective.
Dali has dazzled visual art enthusiasts for nearly a century. Along with its permanent collection, the Dali Museum features special exhibitions, usually including Dali works on loan from other museums and works by other surreal artists. A store is on the property, selling reproductions, jewelry, and perfume inspired by Dali. Special events like the museum’s annual Hispanic Heritage festival and yearlong Breakfast with Dali program for children make the Dali museum a community asset, as well as a treasure for art lovers. More than one hundred docents volunteer at the Dali Museum, providing regular tours to visitors.
