In recent years, Dali's trippy work has all but been banished to cement dorm room walls. For those suddenly released from the constant oversight of authority figures, the choice to pair his bizarre landscapes, a few Pink Floyd tracks, and the trendy mind-altering substance du jour was obvious. Perhaps having stumbled down a similar path in their better days, some Dali-supporting creatives from DDB Berlin have asked themselves what would Dali paint if Dali had something to say about Volkswagon. After all, ready or not, every co-ed eventually gets the boot from college and is entrusted with keys to the real world. And who wouldn't mind a reminder of the responsibility-free clusterfuck that was higher education every time the milk ran out? Oh, wait. People don't think of ads for their car every time they drive it, do they? Well, most people.
But at the end of the day, will those same people who once fell under Dali's spell again find themselves influenced by his surreal ranting? These ads sure are fun to look at, especially in a world where so much car advertising is painfully similar. Asides from their strong pro Vee Dubs message, everything about them looks unmistakably Dali, even if Dali's own obsession with little things like the relativity of time and distortion of space take a back seat (no pun intended) to the new Polo.
If this reappropriation simply has you wanting more Dali and less art abuse, the William Bennet Gallery on Greene St. in NYC is featuring his work right now. Mostly drawings and etchings, much of it available in the low thousands. Strutting through, of course, is perfectly free, and they even have M&Ms at the door.
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