The artist Genia Chef from Berlin remembers the funeral of Salvador Dalí in 1989. The photo of the artist was taken by Marc Lacroix (the photographer of Dalí) in front of the baroque Altar in the Church of Cadaques, the village near the house of Dalí in Port Lligat. For this Church, Genia Chef created the painting "Madonna de la Speranza".
Berlin/New York (meaus) Twenty years ago, I was in Figueras, in Spain--attending the funeral of Salvador Dalí, and stood in the front of the open coffin with the body of the master.
Then there was the funeral celebration in the Cathedral, locatedopposite of the DaliíMuseum, with the special limited number of the invited guests - where I was invited, too.
The huge crowd of the people around the cathedral was staying for the mass--to express their admiration for the Genius.
All the display windown of the shops of the city were decorated, in the memory of Dalí: it was a total surrealistic happening!
Many of Dali's friends--also my friends, came to this sad meeting: Madame Nanita Kalachnikoff, for many years a friend and the big love of Dalí, Rafael Santos-Torroella, famous art-critque from Barcelona, Marc and Theresa Lacroix (Dali's photographer and his wife), Monsieur Pierre Argillet, who established a Dalí museum at his castle in France and who brought about the first Dalí exhibition in Moscow!
Of course, there were Captain John Peter Moore, Robert Descharnes, the Albaretto family from Italy.
And, of course, the big collectors of Dalí--Eleanor and A. Reynolds Morse came from the USA!
It looks like it was only yesterday, because Dalí is with us for ever!
Genia Chef
Berlin, January 23, 2009
© PROMETHEUS 140/2009
PROMETHEUS, Internet Bulletin - News, Politics, Art and Science. Nr. 140, February, 2009