lithograph, paper, 56 x 36 cm
Color lithograph, dimensions: 56 x 36 cm; Velin d'Arches cotton paper produced in the Vosges in Arches, printed on the presses of the master printer Jobin, lithograph made according to the lithographic process of printing, one drawing per color, one color per press pass, signed on the plate; Publisher's dry stamps - Armand Georges Israel; On the lithograph typographically: l.d. "BY SPADEM 1983" and p.d. title of the composition.
Limited edition issued with the permission of Salvador Dali under his personal control. The Dalinian Horses series is listed in the official catalog of Salvador Dali's graphic works published by Albert Fields.
Don Quichotte ou l'Éloge de la Folie is one of a series of Salvador Dali's works under the common title Dalinian Horses.
This series includes 18 lithographs with thehorseas the main motif. The works are as follows: Neptune (Neptune); Pégase (Pegasus); Le Cheval de Troie (TrojanHorse); Bucéphale (Bucephalus); Le Chevalier Romain (Roman Cavalier); Le Centurion (Centurion); Le Cheval de Caligula (Caligula's Horse); Le Cheval de Triomphe (Horse of Triumph); Saint Georges (SaintGeorge); La Licorne (TheUnicorn);Le Chevalier Chrétien (The Knight ofChristianity); Lady Godiva; Le Cheval de Course (The Race Horse); Le Cheval de Labeur (The Work Horse); Le Picador (The Picador); Don Quichotte ou l'Éloge de la Folie (Don Quixote - Praise ofMadness); Le Cheval de la Mort (TheHorse ofDeath); Le Cheval de Printemps( The SpringHorse).
The series of works by Salvador Dali known as "Dalinian Horses" is a quintessential example of Dali's fascination with the symbolism of the horse. Horses were one of the motifs frequently used by Daliinhis various works,as they represented for him strength,freedom, elegance and the spiritual dimension of man.
Dali often referred to figures from Greek and Roman mythology, such as Pegasus or the horses of Helios pulling the chariot ofthe Sun. For him, the symbolism of the horse was universal and multidimensional.Also evident in "Dalinian Horses" arereferences to medieval art andthe Spanishheritage from which he came.
As one of the leading Surrealists, Dali transformed familiar motifs into unusual, often bizarre forms. In "Dalinian Horses," horses are depicted in an unrealistic way - their silhouetteselongate, blurring the boundaries betweenrealityand dream. In this way, Dali explored the limits ofimaginationand thesubconscious.
The "Dalinian Horses" series was executed invarious techniques, including lithography and printmaking, which allowed theartisttoexperiment withdifferent styles and effects. As a result, he was able to fullyshow thedynamism anddrama of the horse figure. In Dali's series, horses are not ordinary animals - they often hover above the ground, alluding to transcendence and the spiritual dimension of life. Their silhouettes are sometimes imbued with anxiety,while remaining majestic. In Dali' s work,the horse is a symbol of strength, butalso of ambivalent emotions:freedom andwildness, andat the same time subjugation and oppression.
