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Note dated Paris, 25 January 1934

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Authors André Breton, Salvador Dalí
People cited Adolf Hitler, Vladimir Ilitch Oulianov, dit Lénine, Violette Nozières, André Breton

Description

Handwritten note from André Breton, dated 25 January 1934, signed by Salvador Dalí.

The Dalí affair, which took place between the end of January and the beginning of March 1934, involved the painter being accused of making fascist remarks. Although he defended himself, as attested by several letters sent to Breton and included in the file, it soon became clear that the issue went far beyond his personal case. In fact, against a backdrop of social unrest (see Tzara and Éluard's letters from Nice), the surrealists needed to clarify their position on the Third International. This was a difficult task, as the A.E.A.R. (Association of Revolutionary Artists and Writers) affair of the previous year had left its mark, with Stalinist infiltration of the association's institutions leading to the departure of Breton and his friends. A subtle distinction thus emerged between the cultural policy of the Third International, which almost everyone rejected, and its political options, which were more amenable to the surrealist group’s members. The Dalí question was thus seen in the context of a more general crisis, both inside and outside a movement that was finding it difficult, as Crevel wrote, to “synthesise the poetic and the political”. Letters, telegrams, minutes of meetings and official declarations make up a fascinating dossier. [Atelier André Breton website, 2005]

Manuscript, in folder headed ‘The Question of the Dalí Affair’ by Breton, 25 January 1934.

- Handwritten text by André Breton in black ink, dated: ‘Paris, 25 January 1934’ and signed by Salvador Dalí (1/2 page in-4° on yellow paper). Breton asks Dalí to show solidarity with the publication of Violette Nozières, to curtail any Hitlerian propaganda and to affirm that his painting The Enigma of William Tell was in no way an attack on Lenin. [Auction Catalogue, 2003]

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