SALVADOR DALÍ | La Chevelure

Paul Eluard, Paris
Georges Hugnet, Paris (acquired from the above in 1941)
Gianna Sistu, Paris
Private collection, Italy (and sold: Sotheby's, Paris, May 30, 2012, lot 4)
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Paris, Centre Georges Pompidou/Musée national d'Art moderne, Salvador Dalí, rétrospective 1920-1980, 1979-80, no. 68
London, Tate Gallery, Salvador Dalí, 1980, no. 55

Robert Descharnes & Gilles Néret, Salvador Dalí, 1904-1989, L'Œuvre peint, Cologne & Paris, 1993, vol. I: 1904-1946, no. 363, illustrated p. 164

Executed on beige flocked paper, not laid down, sandwiched between glass and mount. There are a few tiny pinholes in the upper and lower left corners and some faint restored flattened creases running diagonally across the corners. There is some light frame abrasion and some minor scattered repaired tears along the edges, the largest of which runs horizontally from the centre of the right edge with another smaller one perpendicular to this. There is some minor light staining and a few scattered spots of foxing. This work is in overall good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

"Ah! dark-blue, streaming banner of the night,
You bring me back those azure skies afar,
Plunged in your silken folds my soul takes flight
And drinks once more with measureless delight
The scent of cocoa-oil and musk and tar. For ever I will scatter in each strand,
That thou may’st never turn deaf ears to me,
Rubies, pearls, sapphires with a lavish hand ...
Thou art the well-spring in a desert land
Wherefrom I quaff deep draughts of memory?"

Baudelaire, La Chevelure