Gala was the woman who inspired the most famous Surrealist of them all – Salvador Dali – so it is surprising that this exhibition is the first major examination of her role in his life.Bringing together hundreds of paintings (and some 60 relating to their union), it is a fascinating show not least for the glimpses into the couple’s bizarre lifestyle. Always cited as the painter’s ‘muse’, Russian-born Gala posed for pictures veering from the voyeuristically obscene to the divine as a Madonna.
But she was much more than a model for she became Dali’s agent, transforming him from an obscure artist into a monstrous megalomaniac in her own likeness. Yet, under this guidance his asset value shot upwards. The more successful Dali became, the more Gala was reviled by the art world in general and this show does little to restore her reputation.
Until October 14th at the Museo National d’Art Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
www.museunacional.cat
