Salvador Dali (1904-1989) - Le Tricorne (El sombrero de tres picos)

SALVADOR DALÍ (1904–1989) LE TRICORNE — EL SOMBRERO DE TRES PICOS Collection of original color wood engravings — 1959 Artist: Salvador Dalí (Figueres, 1904–1989). Work: Le Tricorne, original illustrations for the famous novel El sombrero de tres picos, by Pedro Antonio de Alarcón. Edition year: 1959. Publishers: Éditions du Rocher, Monaco, and Nouveau Cercle Parisien du Livre, Paris. Technique: Original color woodcut print, carved and printed by the Bracons-Duplessis workshops. Support: Handmade engraving paper. The original edition was produced on Auvergne paper by Richard de Bas, with a special watermark of the tricorne. Dimensions: 32 × 25.5 cm each sheet. Original edition: Limited edition of 260 numbered copies. Edition composition: 20 original color woodcuts, including the frontispiece. Bibliographic references: * Michler & Löpsinger, Salvador Dalí. Catalogue Raisonné of Prints, volume II, numbers 1018–1037. * Albert Field, The Official Catalog of the Graphic Works of Salvador Dalí, reference 59-1, pages 20–21. * Christie’s, Important Old Books, Illustrated Books and Manuscripts, auction 5415, lot 285. * Swann Galleries, auction 2392, lot 585. Description Magnificent collection of original graphic works by Salvador Dalí, belonging to his renowned Le Tricorne series, produced in 1959 to illustrate the masterpiece of Spanish genre literature El sombrero de tres picos, written by Pedro Antonio de Alarcón. This extraordinary bibliophile edition constitutes one of the most attractive graphic projects of the Catalan master during the 1950s, by merging Dalí’s surreal universe with literary tradition, folklore and the popular characters of 19th-century Spain. Through his illustrations, Dalí transforms the episodes of the well-known novel into compositions of great imagination, populated by human figures with stylized anatomy, grotesque characters, butterflies, symbolic elements and surprising metamorphoses. The extraordinary chromatic richness, the delicate work of the woodcut matrices and the combination of blue, ochre, yellow and reddish tones give these prints an unmistakable artistic personality. The recurring presence of butterflies, one of the most characteristic elements of this series, introduces the symbolism of beauty, transformation and metamorphosis, fundamental concepts in Dalí’s surrealist language. The illustrations were conceived especially to accompany the French edition of the novel, translated by Michel Déon and published in 1959 by Éditions du Rocher, Monaco, and Nouveau Cercle Parisien du Livre, Paris. The work was produced using the traditional technique of color woodcut, employing wooden matrices prepared by the Bracons-Duplessis specialized workshops, which transferred to paper the extraordinary visual richness of the compositions created by Dalí. The original edition, limited to 260 numbered copies, represents a remarkable achievement of European artistic bibliophily in the mid-20th century. Fully documented graphic work in the major Salvador Dalí catalog raisonnés, with specific references in the publications of Michler & Löpsinger and Albert Field, as well as in major international auction houses. The sheets feature wide margins and the characteristic appeal of original prints on handmade paper. A distinguished collection of original Salvador Dalí wood engravings, of extraordinary interest to collectors of surrealism, 20th-century graphics, illustrated Spanish literature, and fine bibliophile editions. Provenance: collection linked to Enrique Sabater

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