Spain Introduction ~ The Dali Museum

There we were, the three of us; Clyde, our daughter, Jackie, and me (Niki), watching Clyde set up his camera while the Tramuntana wind was howling around us. We were laughing at the strength of the wind and marveling at the storm clouds rushing through the sky above us. We were in Spain visiting the home environment of Salvador Dali, and we all felt like we were dreaming.

Many people know that photographers Ansel Adams, Edward Weston and Wynn Bullock have influenced Clyde, but very few know that Salvador Dali was also a major influence in his photography. Clyde has admired the unique flavor of Dali’s work for a long time. His ability to be true to his own way of expressing his view of the world has always been an inspiration for Clyde.

One of the first museums Clyde and I visited after moving to Florida was The Dali Museum, when it first opened in 1982 in St. Petersburg, Florida, in an old rehabilitated marine warehouse. Today, The Dali Museum is located in a beautiful piece of architectural sculpture on the St. Petersburg waterfront.

To help further understand Dali's beloved environment in all its grandeur, The Dali Museum reached out to Clyde with the hope he would join in a project to express Dali's home environment photographically with the same passion. The museum wanted Clyde to create a series of black and white photographs. The photographs were to focus on three specific regions of Dali's world: the village of Cadques, where Dali spent summers while growing up, Dali's house in Port Lligat, and the rugged region of Cap de Creus – all areas prominently featured in Dali's works.

Peter Tush-Curator of Education Jackie Clyde Niki

We met with Peter Tush, Curator of Exhibits and Education, at The Dali Museum, in late 2016 to discuss the project. Clyde hesitated. His hesitation was based on the fact that in his fifty years of doing landscape photography, he has never held down a job for a client. Clyde hasn't had to deal with "deadlines." The fact that he was going to have only nine days to capture enough excellent images to fill a 5000 sq ft room in a major museum was daunting.  However, Clyde's admiration for Dali and the knowledge that seeing the environment of where Dali received his inspiration would help visitors to The Dali Museum to see Dali's work with new appreciation. That helped make his decision to happily accept the offer. (Needless to say, Jackie and I were ecstatic to be going to Spain!)

And so, this blog post is the story of our trip, concluding in the museum exhibit. Enjoy!

To learn more about The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg Florida CLICK HERE

For more information about Salvador Dali CLICK HERE