Freud, Dalí and the Metamorphosis of Narcissus

Sigmund Freud and Salvador Dalí are two of the most significant and influential figures of the twentieth century.

Dalí was a passionate admirer of the father of psychoanalysis and finally met him in London on July 19th 1938. This year 2018 marks the 80th anniversary of this event. A new exhibition at the Freud Museum will explore the connection between the two men, starting from their one meeting, to which Dalí brought his recently completed painting The Metamorphosis of Narcissus.

The painting, on loan from the Tate, is the central point in the exhibition for an exploration of the extensive influence of Freud on Dalí and on Surrealism. Also considered is Freud’s own attitude to painting, illuminated by his response to this encounter with Dalí.

Other themes of the exhibition include the classical origins of the myth of Narcissus and the place of narcissism in psychoanalytic thinking. Freud’s own collections play a part. For example, they include a copy of the classical relief Gradiva; Freud’s study of Wilhelm Jensen’s novel Gradiva was the inspiration for some of Dalí’s important paintings and drawings on this theme from the early 1930s.

Through images, including original paintings and drawings, photographs and prints, and documents including letters, manuscripts, books and Freud’s appointment diary, the intense – if somewhat one-sided – relationship between two extraordinary thinkers and creators are explored.

Freud Museum 3 October  2018 – 24 February 2019.