Famous for his flamboyant personality as well as his art, Salvador Dali worked in several mediums including paintings, poems, screenplays, sculpture, set design, jewelry, advertising and ballet. But it was his early paintings where he combined realistic detail with dream imagery and everyday objects that earned him the reputation as the world’s best-known Surrealist artist.

Born in 1904 in Figueras, Catalonia, Dali was educated at the School of Fine Arts, Madrid. During his education he assimilated a number of artistic styles and showed an unusual talent as a technical painter. Influenced by Picasso’s cubism and the psychological theories of Freud, Dali joined the Surrealists in 1929. There he passionately devoted himself to developing his unique style. His was a dreamworld in which commonplace objects were juxtaposed or metamorphosed in a bizarre and irrational fashion.

But relying on his innate talent, Dali portrayed these objects in scrupulous, almost painfully realistic detail and placed them within bleak, sunlit landscapes that were reminiscent of his homeland.

In 1940 Salvador Dali escaped Nazi-occupied France and immigrated to the United States. His dreamlike style of painting was met with great success and he continued to be one of the most famous artists of the time. In 1948 Dali returned to Europe where he pursued a more classical style of painting focused on subjects such as history, religion and science.

Today Salvador Dali is remembered for his extraordinary body of work, his vivacity and his flair for getting publicity through scandal. To this day his work possesses an abundance of talent and celebrity.