A curator holds a photo of artist Salvador Dali by Man Ray in a London archive.
Salvador Dali, the Spanish artist whose very life embodied the ideals of Surrealism, was born in northern Spain and spent much of his life there. Not far from Barcelona is an area known as the Dali Triangle, where you'll find three amazing buildings significant to any exploration of Dali. From his birthplace to his self-designed museum to the castle he bought for his wife, the Dali Triangle provides the opportunity to get to know this strange and brilliant artist on his own turf. Visiting the Triangle and surrounding towns is an adventure you shouldn't miss when you travel to Spain.
Instructions
1. Start in Girona, capital of the Spanish region of Catalonia -- a visit here is essential to getting an understanding of the area. Girona is an ancient Roman town with narrow cobblestone streets, tiny shops and restaurants and old-world charm that will transport you to the 12th century, when the Jewish quarter -- the "Call" -- was established. Only 62 miles from Barcelona and accessible by bus, train or car, it feels worlds away from the big-city bustle.
2. Drive up to Cadaques, a small Mediterranean town where Dali was a frequent visitor. The whitewashed village, sparkling blue sea and cobbled streets once made this remote hideaway a favorite haunt of other artists as well, including Picasso, Miro and Marcel Duchamp.
3. Drive to Port Lligat, a fishing village where Dali and his wife, Gala, built a home. The Dalis, who purchased their home as a small shack, added to it over the years, and the end result is an eclectic assortment of tacked-on rooms at odd angles, filled with weird Dali-esque knick-knacks, including a giant taxidermied polar bear that greets visitors in the foyer. The area surrounding the house is quiet and peaceful, and the windows in Dali's studio gaze out on the calm waters of the bay.
4. Head to Figueres, where Dali designed the Museum-Theater that houses many of his works. The building itself is a spectacle, standing out on a quite ordinary city street. It's painted a salmon pink, its roof is flanked with large eggs and gold casts of bread loaves dot the museum's surface. Inside is no less fascinating, with a giant atrium holding Dali's famous work "Rainy Taxi" and floor after floor of his imaginative, groundbreaking paintings. Dali is buried in the museum.
5. Escape the madness -- sort of -- by driving to Pubol, a small town whose highlight is a castle that Dali purchased for his wife, Gala, in the 1960s. Dali was permitted to visit the castle only at Gala's invitation; years went by before one was extended. Gala's tomb is in the castle's basement. The lovely gardens outside the castle, with a few of Dali's spindly elephant sculptures keeping company with lush greenery and trees, stand in stark contrast to Dali's world.
