Etching and mezzotint on paper
Tate Collection
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<a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/salvador-dali-971" aria-label="More by Salvador Dalí" data-gtm-name="header_link_artist" data-gtm-destination="page--artist">Salvador Dalí</a>
King Aragon
Presented by Christie's Contemporary Art 1979
actions: postures and motions
adults
animals: mammals
architecture
cloak
clothing and personal items
crown
emotions, concepts and ideas
formal qualities
group
groups
horse
king
knight
man
military
nationality
objects
people
religious and ceremonial
riding
royalty and social rank
silhouette
sitting
society
Spanish
standing
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transport: land
woman
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paper print etching mezzotint
King of Aragon
image: 483 × 356 mm
Presented by Christie's Contemporary Art 1979
<div class="text">
<p>
<b>Salvador Dalí </b>1904–1989</p>
<p>
<b>King of Aragon</b>
<br/>1972–3<br/>Etching with mezzotint on Rigal paper <br/>Image 483 x 356 mm on 670 x 500 mm<br/>Presented by Christie’s Contemporary Art, London 1979<br/>P01864</p>
<p>
<b>References:</b>
<br/>
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<div class="left-block">1996</div>
<div class="right-block">Albert Field, <i>The Official Catalog of the Graphic Works of Salvador Dalí</i>,<i> </i>New York 1996, p.80.</div>
</div>
<p>
<i>King of Aragon </i>is similar to other graphic work executed by Dalí in the 1970s, notably his illustrations for his 1932 film scenario, <i>Babaouo</i>,<i> </i>published as a graphic suite in 1978, which similarly modelled an image from an abstract splodge of ink set against a loosely drawn background. Here, the ink stain becomes the King’s royal robes trimmed in ermine; he extends his right arm in a benevolent gesture, while a parade of horsemen and holy figures fills the background. The King is capped by a floating crown – an emblem the artist used frequently in his work and especially in his own signature; for Dalí, this crown signified both monarchy and morphology, as its shape was derived from a well-known stroboscopic photograph of a drop of milk splashing into a bowl. The general effect is quite theatrical; indeed, the background might just as easily be a backdrop, presenting the King centre stage, perched atop a short pedestal.</p>
<p>As there were sixteen monarchs of the House of Aragon and potentially many more, depending on how one considers the ruling house in relation to the Crown, the identity of Dalí’s subject is not conclusive. He may be referring to James I of Aragon, known as ‘the Conqueror’ (1208–1276), who became ruler over the counties of the Principality of Catalonia in 1258, when the king of France relinquished his feudal lordship over the region. Under James I, Catalonia became an important catalyst for expansion of the empire. Further, when James I erected the Kingdom of Majorca in 1276, he made Perpignan its capital; Dalí was known to have tremendous affection for the city of Perpignan – particularly its train station, which he declared in 1964 to be the ‘centre of the universe’.</p>
<p>Alternatively, given his later religious fervour and the figures to the rear the King, Dalí’s etching may be an homage to another King of Aragon, Ferdinand II, ‘The Catholic’ (1452–1516). When Ferdinand succeeded his father as King of Aragon in 1479, the territories of the Crown of Aragon were united with the Crown of Castille, thus forging a single political unit initiating modern Spain. Under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, Spain became a Catholic monarchy – a historical subject that greatly interested Dalí, evidenced by his 1958–9 painting <i>The Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus </i>(The Salvador Dalí Museum, Saint Petersburg, Florida) which recalled that it was under Ferdinand and Isabella’s patronage that Columbus (whom Dalí believed was Catalan) set sail in 1492. </p>
<p>
<i>King of Aragon</i> is Tate’s only example of Dalí’s prints.</p>
<p>Elliott H. King<br/>December 2007</p>
<p>
<i>Supported by The AHRC Research Centre for the Study of Surrealism and its Legacies.</i>
</p>
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Catalogue entry
2012-07-11T00:00:00
catalogue-entry
CATALOGUE_ENTRY
actions: postures and motions adults animals: mammals architecture cloak clothing and personal items crown emotions, concepts and ideas formal qualities group groups horse king knight man military nationality objects people religious and ceremonial riding royalty and social rank silhouette sitting society Spanish standing townscape townscapes / man-made features transport: land woman work and occupations