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Untitled (Dream of Venus) formerly Visions of Eternity by Salvador Dalí

Untitled (Dream of Venus) formerly Visions of Eternity

Salvador Dalí · 1939

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“Step into a dream with this fragment of a mural from Dalí's 1939 World's Fair pavilion, where classical forms meet surreal visions of melting clocks and burning giraffes.”

ABOUT THIS WORK

A lone figure, draped in a white sheet, stands before a vast, empty landscape, framed by an arched passage. This painting was originally part of a much larger mural for Salvador Dalí's "Dream of Venus" pavilion at the 1939 New York World's Fair. The pavilion, a blend of classical beauty and burlesque, featured this mural in its "dry" section, while an adjacent aquarium hosted live performances. The surreal elements, including a melting clock and a burning giraffe, are characteristic of Dalí's iconography from the 1930s. The arched passage seen here was mirrored on the mural's now-lost right side, creating a grand, if unsettling, entryway into Dalí's dreamscape. The work draws you into a world both familiar and deeply strange, reflecting the artist's fascination with dreams and the subconscious.

DETAILS
Artist
Salvador Dalí
Date
1939
Medium
Oil on canvas
Location
Art Institute of Chicago
Dimensions
207 × 117.5 cm (81 1/2 × 46 1/4 in.)
Collection
Modern Art
Culture
Spain
Credit line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph R. Shapiro
ART MOVEMENTS
Surrealism
LOOK CLOSER

What to Notice

Five details hide in plain sight. Pick one and we’ll show you exactly where to look.

Untitled (Dream of Venus) formerly Visions of Eternity

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01

The dark hunched figure

Perched on top of the arch, a black, smoky figure bends forward with a smooth pale head, its body torn open with ragged holes.

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02

The black-edged arch

The thick black edge of the arch cuts a bold curve against the pale wall. It frames a calm sea and leads your eye from the figure above toward the distant horizon.

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03

Tiny figure in the arch

Through the opening, a tiny, thin figure stands near the water's edge, holding something up that could be a net or a cloth. It is easy to miss next to the huge arch.

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04

Floating soft shapes

Small gray bean-like shapes and wispy squiggles drift down beside the figure's raised hand. They look like pieces breaking away from the figure.

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05

Two beans below

Two glossy gray bean shapes float near the bottom in the dark foreground. They echo the drifting forms above and anchor the tall picture.

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AUDIO DEEP DIVE

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THE ARTIST

Salvador Dalí

1904–1989 · Spain

Dalí painted melting clocks and dream logic with the precision of an Old Master — then became the most famous eccentric alive.

Read Dalí’s full story
MORE FROM THIS ARTIST

Further Works by Dalí

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Untitled (Desert Landscape) Untitled (Desert Landscape) 1934 · Art Institute of Chicago A Chemist Lifting with Extreme Precaution the Cuticle of a Grand Piano A Chemist Lifting with Extreme Precaution the Cuticle of a Grand Piano 1936 · Art Institute of Chicago Inventions of the Monsters Inventions of the Monsters 1937 · Art Institute of Chicago Gala Gala 1931 · Dalí Theatre and Museum Portrait of Gala with Two Lamb Chops in Equilibrium upon Her Shoulder Portrait of Gala with Two Lamb Chops in Equilibrium upon Her Shoulder 1934 · Art Institute of Chicago City of Drawers City of Drawers 1936 · Art Institute of Chicago Venus de Milo with Drawers Venus de Milo with Drawers 1936 · Art Institute of Chicago The Image Disappears The Image Disappears 1938 · Art Institute of Chicago
EXPLORE THE MOVEMENT

More from Surrealism

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The Old Guitarist The Old Guitarist Picasso · 1903 · Art Institute of Chicago Death in the Garden (Legend) Death in the Garden (Legend) Klee · 1919 · Art Institute of Chicago Dada Gauguin Dada Gauguin Ernst · 1920 · Art Institute of Chicago The Eye The Eye Magritte · 1932 · Art Institute of Chicago
KEEP EXPLORING

More works to explore

Beyond Dalí and Surrealism: works from the same years.

Greyed Rainbow Same era · 1920s–1950s Greyed Rainbow Jackson Pollock · 1953 · Art Institute of Chicago Sun Spot Same era · 1920s–1950s Sun Spot Yayoi Kusama · 1953 · Art Institute of Chicago Deux personnages Same era · 1920s–1950s Deux personnages Pierre Alechinsky · 1950 Divided and Divided Same era · 1920s–1950s Divided and Divided Ivan Puni · 1941 · Art Institute of Chicago Nighthawks Same era · 1920s–1950s Nighthawks Okada Saburosuke · 1942 · Art Institute of Chicago The Indestructibles Same era · 1920s–1950s The Indestructibles Philip Evergood · 1946 · Art Institute of Chicago Straße mit Passanten bei Nachtbeleuchtung Same era · 1920s–1950s Straße mit Passanten bei Nachtbeleuchtung Ernst Ludwig Kirchner · 1927 · Museum Frieder Burda Red No. 2 Same era · 1920s–1950s Red No. 2 Sam Francis · 1954 · Art Institute of Chicago
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