Salvador Dali (Spanish, 1904-1989)
Carmen Castanets (c. 1970)
Bronze, Artist Proof edition
26cm tall
Accompanied by the original certification of authenticity from the publisher 2049 Obra Contemporanea, as descended from Dali.
Beautiful Spaniard woman archetype performing a Flamenco dance. Carmen is depicted as the beautiful and wild gypsy dancing to the sound of the castanets which she holds between her fingers. Seducing the watcher in the same way Merimee’s heroine seduced all men around her. Prosper Merimée said of his leading character in Carmen that she spoke Basque and exerted a maddening effect on men that eventually lead her to destruction. This novel, published in 1845, quickly became the stereotype of Spanish women: free, fiery, superstitious, proud and wild, provoking uproar in the society of the time which demanded the exact opposite of women: virtue and maternity, laboriousness, obedience and submission.
