FIGUERES.- The Madonna of Portlligat, considered by Salvador Dalí to be one of his masterpieces, synthesizes the painter’s evolution from Surrealism to Nuclear Mysticism, the stage in which he drew inspiration simultaneously from modern physics, religion, and a return to classicism to shape his conception of the world.

The work traveled more than 10,000 kilometres from Fukuoka, Japan, to Figueres, to be exhibited at the Dalí Theatre-Museum from 17th September 2025 to 22nd February 2026, thanks to the exceptional loan from the Fukuoka Art Museum. This is a unique occasion, since the painting has not been seen in Spain since 1952, when it was included in the 1st Hispano-American Biennial of Art, held in Madrid and Barcelona. The exhibition is curated by Montse Aguer, Director of the Dalí Museums, with the collaboration of Rosa Maria Maurell, Head of Documentation; Lucia Moni, curator; and junior curators Clàudia Galli and Maria Carreras, from the Dalí Foundation.

In addition to this extraordinary work, the exhibition features 11 little-known photographs by Mark Kauffman for Life magazine, showing Salvador Dalí with the painting at the Carstairs Gallery in New York, during its first public presentation.

Audiovisual

The exhibition also includes a 4-minute audiovisual that illustrates the fascinating journey that has led the work to be admired worldwide — from its first public presentation in New York to, among others, the Galerie André Weil in Paris, the Lefevre Gallery in London, the 1st Hispano-American Biennial of Art in Madrid and Barcelona, and the Sala delle Cariatidi of the Palazzo Reale in Milan.

The audiovisual contains archival material preserved at the Centre for Dalinian Studies, as well as documents resulting from exhaustive research in external archives. It is a production by the Dalí Foundation, directed by David Pujol, script written in collaboration with Montse Aguer, and with the contribution of Lucia Moni. Editing was carried out by Jordi Muñoz, and content research and coordination by Lucia Moni and Maria Carreras.

GENESIS OF THE MADONNA OF PORTLLIGAT

After eight consecutive years in the United States, Salvador Dalí returned to Portlligat in 1948, determined to reconnect with his roots and embark on one of the deepest transformations of his career: Nuclear Mysticism. This vital and artistic shift, born of the desire to respond to what Josep Maria Massip described in the book Dalí, hoy as a “terrible spiritual struggle,” combined classical tradition with religion and the latest scientific discoveries. The impact of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki shook Dalí profoundly, leading him to make the atom and its disintegration central to his reflections, with the goal of creating a new iconography that united science and religion. Out of this process was born one of his most iconic works, The Madonna of Portlligat, which Dalí himself considered a milestone and which today remains a symbol of his extraordinary ability to reinvent himself.

The Madonna of Portlligat: two versions for the same ideal

In 1949 Dalí painted the first version, a small-format work in which Gala appears as the Virgin Mary, her head split open by a central fissure. That same year, he presented it to Pope Pius XII in a private audience, seeking his blessing to marry Gala in a Catholic religious ceremony.

In the summer of 1950, Dalí returned to his Portlligat studio to create a second, large-scale version —the one featured in this exhibition at the Dalí Theatre-Museum.

From Portlligat to Manhattan

In November 1950, The Madonna of Portlligat made its public debut at the Carstairs Gallery in New York. Its installation turned into a real headache: the canvas was so large it would not fit through the door or elevator and had to be hoisted from the street up to the sixth floor with ropes, under Dalí’s direct supervision.

This episode was documented by photographer Mark Kauffman and published in Life magazine under the title “Madonna in Mid-Air.”

“Gala, you are reality”

Gala — muse, model, manager, and indispensable accomplice for Dalí (who even declared in The Unspeakable Confessions: “Without my twin Gala, I would not exist”) — appears here transformed into the Madonna. This representation not only consecrates her as a central figure in his spirituality but also defies established canons, breaking social conventions by presenting the unconventional figure of Gala in the role of the Madonna. Dalí wrote in his autobiography: “Gala, you are reality.”

A bridge to the Renaissance

In The Madonna of Portlligat, Dalí once again turns to the Renaissance and its ideals of perfection and harmony. The Madonna is reinterpreted, surrounded by floating elements that refer to atomic separation and decomposition of matter, and set within the eternal landscape of the Empordà region, where Dalí was born and raised. Symbols such as the shell with the egg evoke works like The Virgin and Child, Saints, Angels and Federico da Montefeltro by Piero della Francesca, while the drapery — which creates a theatrical setting — recalls Raphael’s Sistine Madonna.

Symbolism and Nuclear Physics

The Madonna of Portlligat becomes a compendium of Dalinian symbols: bread as a symbol of the Eucharist; sea urchins as a cosmic metaphor; molluscs and crustaceans evoking both the Mediterranean world and Gala; roses and olive branches as symbols of peace and eternity. The objects levitate, and the light gives the work an aura of revelation. Dalí condenses his pursuit of harmony between science and religion, between matter and spirit.

Legacy and relevance

The Madonna of Portlligat is a vital manifesto for Dalí. He himself defined it as “an integration of all surrealist symbols into the mystical classical tradition of Spanish painters.” Today, Dalí’s work continues to inspire and captivate audiences, as testimony to a moment when an artist, enthralled with eternity, sought to unite past and future.