Salvador Dalí (1904-1989), Divine Comedy: Inferno, Purgatory, Paradise - set of 6 volumes

Color woodcuts (100 pieces); 33 x 26 cm (sheet)

Provenance:
Art Gallery, Milan

Published by:
Les Heures Claires, Paris 1960.

Literature:
Dalí S., Michler R., Löpsinger L. W., "Salvador Dalí, Catalogue Raisonné of Prints II Lithographs and Wood Engravings 1956-1980," reference: 1039-1138.

A unique collector's set of works made using the woodcut technique, includes artistic interpretations to one of the most famous literary items in history - Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy."
Between 1951 and 1960, Salvador Dali was invited by the Italian government to commemorate the most famous Italian poet by creating a series of illustrations to this masterpiece. Dali and French publisher Joseph Foret worked on the publication of "The Divine Comedy," handing over the project to the French publishing company Les Heures Claires. The drawings created by the artist were then reproduced using the technique of engraving in wood. Using this technique, engravers carved 3,500 blocks of wood for the prints that make up the book. Finally, after 55 months of hard work, the edition was completed. The artist followed the poet starting from the deepest circles of hell, up into purgatory and into heavenly paradise. The artistic journey resulted in unique images, using elements of the grotesque, but also pathos.
Each volume offered includes a title page, table of contents and an explanatory page. They are housed in a cardboard case with matching inner boards. Each work of Dali's "Divine Comedy" is part of a chapter from a song or book. A canto is about 8 pages long. The "Inferno" section contains 34 works, "Purgatory" - 33 works and respectively "Paradise" - 33 works. Dali himself considered this collection one of the most important in his career.