Salvador Dalí, for his part, exults in a papier mâché mask that Fabrizio Clerici21 deems to be a genuine work of art. In an unpublished piece from 1989, the Italian refers to his encounter with the artist in the course of the party and states his surprise at the simplicity of Dalí’s costume — now stripped of its outer layer —, that he perceives to be a beautiful provocation in the context of the luxury and ostentation surrounding the whole event. According to Clerici, there is a single detail that redeems the artist from that asceticism that jars
18 Antoni Pitxot, Montse Aguer, The Dalí Theatre-Museum. Figueres, Fundació GalaSalvador Dalí, Triangle Postals, Figueres, 2016, p. 125. It is very likely that they reprise elements from the Goya-inspired wardrobe created by Dalí for The Three-Cornered Hat ballet premiered at New York’s Ziegfeld Theater 24 April 1949. Some of those designs are reproduced in Dalí il·lustrador: Salvador Dalí, 1904-1989, Govern d’Andorra, Ministeri de Turisme i Cultura, Andorra, 2001, p. 210-215 and Dalí Monumental, Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, São Paulo, 1998, p. 255-265. 19 This part of the costume, in the case of the giants, is supported by an inner structure giving them a height of almost three metres. 20 Barbara Jeauffroy-Mairet, “L’Entrée des géants”, in Dior, le bal des artistes, Artlys, Versailles, 2011, p. 46-47.
THE BALL OF THE CENTURY
58
their characters in tricorns pulled tightly down, blanched faces and neatly laced garments, signal clear connections to the Spanish theatrical tradition.18 The apparent simplicity of the garments conceal their double function: while the outer layer allows those concerned to make a spectacular entrance to the ball [CAT. 27, CAT. 32, CAT. 39], the under layer,19 consisting in a silvered tunic made of fluted material, with large turned hems and white lapels, provides a more practical garment with which to enjoy the party in comfort.20 This simpler second layer is complemented by individualized adornments such as foulards, tricornes, wigs, flowers and masks of different formats. Dior and Bousquet, for example, opt for a mask that goes back to the pharaohs of ancient Egypt [CAT. 36, CAT. 37], while Gala chooses an elegant mask made of feathers with black lace edging [CAT. 38].
FIG. 2
Salvador Dalí dress, Christian Dior spring-summer 2018 haute couture collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri. Collection Dior Héritage, Paris
rather in his respect: the flimsy mask with ashen, pales hues covering his face [CAT. 35].22 According to some sources, Dalí recognized his appearance wasn’t particularly outrageous the afternoon before the soirée, and walked around Venice searching for large ants he wanted to attach to his mask to give it more piquancy.23 In the end, however,
21 Fabrizio Clerici, Italian painter, stage designer and architect. He collaborates with Dalí on the stage set for Rosalinda o Come vi piace, that receives its premiere at Rome’s Teatro Eliseo in 1948, directed by Luchino Visconti. He is attributed with designing the costume for the Messenger from the Moon worn by Countess Marina Cicogna. 22 Fabrizio Clerici, unpublished text Tre incontri con Salvador Dalí, 1989, Rome, Fabrizio Clerici Archive. 23 “Au bal du siècle Beistegui a été sifflé”, Paris-Presse, 05/09/1951, Paris.
the ants become part of another Dalí detail we learn about thanks to the testimony of Pierre Cardin. After working almost a year making the disguises for Beistegui’s ball, the designer was yet to receive his most way-out commission: “My friend Salvador Dalí told me: ‘Pierre, I need a handful of ants.’ […] It wasn’t easy finding those little insects in the centre of Venice, so I had to go out into the countryside. When I returned with a box full of them, Dalí put them in some double-lensed spectacles and spent the night with those little beasties wandering anxiously around his gaze.”24 It isn’t clear if Salvador Dalí personally goes in search of the ants; what we do know for sure — lots of photos capture the moment [CAT. 28, CAT. 29, CAT. 30, CAT. 31, CAT. 33] —, is that on the afternoon before the ball, the artist with Gala, Dior and the rest of his retinue go on an amusing passacaglia along the city’s streets. Following a tradition of Catalan popular culture,25 the giants conceived by Dalí and Dior appropriate the public space and parade among the Venetians, thus participating in the festive atmosphere accompanying the staging of the ball. Carlos de Beistegui, on the suggestion of the mayor of Venice, also takes the trouble to involve the poorer classes in his poet’s dream and organizes a party well supplied with drink, food, music and entertainment on the piazza Campo San Geremia, adjacent to the Palazzo Labia. Even so, the spectacle of pomp and elegance that dazzles
24 Vera Bercovitz, “Yo quería sacar mis creaciones a la calle, celebrities y princesas me daban igual”, Vanity Fair, 06/12/2015. Available at: https://www.revistavanityfair.es/la-revista/ articulos/entrevista-pierre-cardin-biografia/21617 [consulted: 27/11/2019]. 25 Carme Ruiz, “L’empremta de l’Empordà i la cultura catalana en l’obra de Salvador Dalí”. Paper given at the Dalí Theatre-Museum, Figueres, 27/11/2014. The author analyses different popular and traditional elements within Dalí’s work and demonstrates how the artist uses them in a series of festive acts in which he is the focal point.