Persistence of Memory Explanation
The Persistence of Memory, one of Salvador Dali's most famous paintings, is a true masterpiece of Surrealism. It was the major piece that helped to introduce the Surrealist movement into American society. Dali painted this work in 1931, and it has since then become one of his most recognized works.
Symbolism
This painting portrays simultaneously a dreamscape, a landscape and a self-portrait of Salvador Dali's life. He combined images that echoed life in the 1930s, such as nature and technology.
Goals
While the painting is a landscape of Port Lligat, a place favored by Dali, the most recognized images from this work are that of the three melting time pieces. The goal of the Surrealist artist is to confound, perplex, challenge, portray the irrational, and at the same time offer a paradoxical account of reality and fantasy.
Change
The time pieces are thought to represent dramatic change. Dali reused these time pieces throughout much of his paintings after the success of The Persistence of Memory, and introduced them again in his revisionist painting, The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory.
Dreams and Memory
Looking at The Persistence of Memory, one feels like they have been transported into a dream--which may be the only thing that really makes sense in this Dali work. But, upon further examination, the viewer begins to notice the interesting way Dali used light and shadow throughout his work. It has been suggested that the shadow images represent subconscious thought, while those images in bright light represent consciousness.
Interpretation
Salvador Dali never answered any questions about his work in a serious manner. He once claimed that the melting time pieces were no more than an image he imagined upon seeing Camembert cheese that had been left too long in the sun.
