Salvador Dalí, Angel, 1947

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Watercolour and gouache on paper

32 x 24.3 cm.
12 ⅝ x 9 9/16 in
framed: 56 x 47.6 x 3.4 cm

Salvador Dalí’s Angel (1947), executed in watercolour and gouache on paper, exemplifies the artist’s extraordinary draftsmanship and refined sense of proportion. The ethereal figure, rendered with fluid elegance and restrained color, reflects not only his technical mastery but also a renewed spiritual sensibility that became increasingly present in his work after 1945. The angel, draped in wind-swept robes and surrounded by a subtle play of light and shadow, floats with a theatrical grace that is both otherworldly and mathematically precise.

Angels held a profound personal significance for Dalí, functioning as both spiritual messengers and artistic ideals. In his writings, he frequently meditated on their form and metaphysical role. His angels are often portrayed with androgynous bodies and idealized proportions, aligning with his belief in their asexual nature and in the concept of divine symmetry. In this way, the angel becomes not merely a religious motif but a vehicle for exploring Platonic ideals of beauty and transcendence, concepts that were central to Dalí’s late mysticism.

The elongated figure in Angel holds a long, slender trumpet raised to its lips, a clear allusion to apocalyptic iconography from Renaissance and Baroque traditions, where such instruments signify divine annunciation or judgment. The motif of the trumpet-bearing angel recurs throughout Dalí’s religious work and particularly in his illustrations for the Apocalypse of Saint John, where it operates as a symbol of revelation and spiritual awakening. The muted, monochromatic palette, dominated by tones of brown, white, and sepia, adds a sense of timelessness to the image, allowing the viewer to focus on the form, gesture, and symbolic resonance. In its stillness and solemnity, Dalí’s Angel communicates a reverence for divine order, blending mysticism, mathematics, and the sublime into a single, contemplative image.

Provenance

Private Collection

Guillermo de Osma Gallery, Claudio Coello 4, Madrid

Private Collection, Europe

Bonhams London: Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Private Collection, Europe

Salvador Dalí Spain, 1904-1989

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Salvador Dalí Spain, 1904-1989

Provenance