Dali exhibit coming to Queens College

An upcoming exhibition at the Godwin-Ternbach Museum at Queens College will examine Salvador Dalí’s work with choreographers.
The exhibition, “Dalí Dance and Beyond,” will be on display from April 12 to June 12, with an opening reception on April 15. From 1939 to 1962, Dalí, a surrealist, collaborated with Léonide Massine, George Balanchine and Maurice Béhart, all of whom were important figures in modern dance.
While working in the area of modern dance, Dalí was involved in a variety of areas, including creating props, décor and costumes. However, he also wrote librettos, selected music and even was part of the choreography.
More than 45 images from Italy, Belgium and the United States that have not been previously published are included in the exhibition. Other items that will be shown are postcards, books, and correspondences, among other printed pieces.
“Recently there has been a move to rehabilitate Dalí for his contribution to ‘low’ culture – his later work in fashion, jewelry, advertising, etc., and his role as a forerunner of the pop-art movement,” said Dr. Frédérique Joseph-Lowery, one of the exhibit organizers. “We take a different approach. It is important to recognize his contribution to ‘high’ culture.”
Dr. Amy Winter, the director of the museum who also organized the exhibit, said that its purpose is “to revise the disdain and lack of attention to Dalí’s work from that period.”
Several events will be held in connection to the exhibit. During the April 15 opening reception, which will begin at 6:30 p.m., there will be a lecture at 7:30 p.m. The lecture, entitled “Paranoia and Infra-thin, Complementary Strategies between Duchamp and Dalí,” will be give by Jean-Michael Rabaté, an English and comparative literature professor at the University of Pennsylvania.
The symposium “Dalí Today” will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 22 in room 230 of Queens College’s Benjamin Rosenthal Library. It will also be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, April 23 at the King Juan Carlos I Center at 53 Washington Square South in Manhattan.
The various speakers who participate in the symposium will discuss Dalí’s relevance and aspects of his work.
Also on April 22, the contemporary dance performance “Eorasonnée” will be held on campus at 7:30 p.m. in the Goldstein Theatre. The show is being presented by Virginie Souquet, who is a Dalí interpreter and choreographer. The performance will feature a solo piece that Souquet created in 2007.
The Godwin-Ternbach Museum is located in 405 Klapper Hall on the Queens College campus, 65-30 Kissena Boulevard, Flushing. It is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information, visit www.qcpages.qc.cuny.edu/godwin_ternbach or call 718-997-4747.