Salvador Dalí’s early painting sold at €150k auction starting bid

The unpublished painting by Catalan surrealist artist Salvador Dalí was auctioned on Thursday around 9 pm for €150,000. The only bidder took the piece for the starting bid in Barcelona's Subarna auction.

The 1921 oil on canvas, 'Still Life,' was painted by a mourning Dalí after losing his mother, Felipa Domènch. It is a work from Dalí's first period and depicts a cup and a bottle on a blue background. He painted it very early in his career when he was just 17 years old.

"At that time, it was not the Dalí that we all know now, the surrealist artist, nor the histrionic person," Josep Solé, head of marketing at Subarna auction house, told Catalan News a few days before the auction day.

"We are talking about a starting point, a person that slowly starts to get influenced by avant-garde artistic movements," he added.

"The importance is that we are talking about a pre-surrealist Dalí, and a most sensorial one," Solé said.

Signed on the lower left on the reverse with the word Dalí, it was painted during one of the most existential crises Dalí had after losing his mother, who was one of the prominent supporters of his artistic career.

He added, "We cannot feel surrealism in the painting yet, but we can start to see some cubism art styles, taking into account the different forms. " The painting has several influences, including Picasso, Joan Gris, and Greco.

The painting was previously exhibited in 1955 in the Spanish city of Cuenca between December 17, 1955, and January 15, 1956, during the first exposition on contemporary art at the Cuenca museum.

Experts expected the final bidder to pay around €250,000, which was €100,000 more than the winning auction bid.

Beyond the mustache

On May 11, 2024, we celebrated the 120th anniversary of the birth of the legendary Catalan artist Salvador Dalí, whose influence on the art world continues to captivate audiences worldwide.

The surrealist painter was born in the northern Catalan town of Figueres, but spent most of his life in the picturesque coastal towns of Cadaqués and Port Lligat, from where he drew much of his inspiration.

Although Dalí was best known for his surrealist art and eccentricities - including his mustache, which we will talk about - there is so much more to discover. 

Press play below to listen and explore the surreal world of Salvador Dalí or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, YouTube or Spotify.