An Artist Discovers Paris or Is It The Other Way Around

Success in Paris sometimes takes no more than the right meeting. When Dali arrived in 1925, he carried letters of introduction to the many Spanish expatriate artists. But he only wanted to meet Pablo Picasso. The painter Manuel Angeles Ortiz took him to Picasso’s studio. ” I have come to see you before visiting the Louvre,” Dali said. “Quite right,” responded Picasso complacently. He examined without comment the small painting Dali had brought as a gift then led him round his studio, in silence, displaying example after example of his recent work.  At the end of the tour, he gave Dali a searching look, as if to say, “You get the idea?” Dali’s responding glace said all that needed to be said. Paris had given him what he wanted from it. He could leave the city, knowing that his future as an artist was assured.  Exert from We’ll Always Have Paris by John Baxter

I read this exert on the flight home. I was fortunate to have  my own Dali experience while in Paris. The place has a way with one.