As we finish up our Dada Composites, I thought I’d share one of my favorite nonsensical/surrealist art pieces. This is Salvador Dali’s “The Persistence of Memory.” This is one of my favorite pieces by Dali for two reasons. One, I have always loved clocks. Growing up, I had at least four clocks in my bedroom, and many more scattered around the house. Second, my mother has always loved Dali and this is one of her favorite pieces as well. I never really knew where Dali got the inspiration for this piece, but according to thedaliuniverse.com, “The famous melting clocks represent the omnipresence of time, and identify its mastery over human beings. It is said that his inspiration for the soft watch came from the surreal way that Dalí saw a piece of runny Camembert cheese melting in the sun.” I think the fact that the clocks were partly inspired by melting cheese makes it even more fascinating.
