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Lot Essay
Robert and Nicolas Descharnes have confirmed the authenticity of this gouache.
In 1951, Dalí began to paint watercolors intended to serve as illustrations for a special edition of Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy. The artist produced 100 illustrations in all, one for each Canto, plus a cover design. Joseph Foret, who had commissioned the edition, executed Dalí's maquettes as colored wood engravings in Paris between 1959 and 1963. Dalí painted The Furies as the maquette for Canto IX of the Inferno, in which Dante and his guide Virgil descend into Limbo. The Furies in classical mythology were the bringers of wrath and retribution.
In 1951, Dalí began to paint watercolors intended to serve as illustrations for a special edition of Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy. The artist produced 100 illustrations in all, one for each Canto, plus a cover design. Joseph Foret, who had commissioned the edition, executed Dalí's maquettes as colored wood engravings in Paris between 1959 and 1963. Dalí painted The Furies as the maquette for Canto IX of the Inferno, in which Dante and his guide Virgil descend into Limbo. The Furies in classical mythology were the bringers of wrath and retribution.