Figueres - a day trip inside the mind of Salvador Dalí

If you read my last blog post and thought that my week in Barçelona seemed to be missing a few days, well, you would be correct. One day was spent completely hungover with my roommates at the movies (watched Gone Girl in English with Spanish subtitles); and the other unaccounted day was spent going to Figueres, a town in Catalonia which has one major claim to fame - it is the hometown of the artistic genius Salavador Dalí. I recall as a child that one of my piano music books had his famous melting clocks painting ("The persistence of Memory") and being transfixed by it. This image stayed in my mind for many years, not because of any real intellectual understanding of the work, but because I loved that it was a like a dream made in a waking state. I was a kid that was prone to daydreaming and I was (and still am to some extent) able to lucid dream. Dreams fascinate me, and Dalí's work has always been a favourite of mine.

Below: "The persistence of Memory" as a tapestry in the Teatre Museu Dalí in Figueres.

When I was doing my research for places I wanted to see in Spain, I was delighted to read that I could go to Figueres as it was close to Barçelona and I could take in a whole museum of Dalí's works. Further, I was really interested to see the museum as a structure in itself - as the Teatre Museu Dalí was a former municipal theatre that suffered damage during the Spanish civil war before being burned down by Pro-Franco troops in 1939. Dalí took an interest in the building and invested much of his money into creating a building that was as surreal as the artworks inside. The Teatre opened in 1974 and includes works by Dalí, some of his students, and a notable surrealist called Antoni Pitxot. This museum is the second most visited art museum in Spain, after the Prado in Madrid.

My hostel roommate Brooke (also from Vancouver) and I headed out to Figueres on a Thursday morning, and we were happy to discover that our Eurail passes covered the train journey for the day. Alighting in Figueres two hours later, we were starving. Following the map to the main square, and then following my intuition, we can upon a tapas place that offered some of the best food I've had in Spain (which is saying a lot). The restaurant is called Lizarran, and they specialize in a form of tapas called pinchos, which loosely translates to "bites." They are pieces of bread with all manner of toppings and a toothpick holding the whole creation together. Pinchos are self-served from a glass case that runs the length of the bar's counter. You simply choose which pinchos you want, and when you are full the restaurant counts the number of toothpicks and charges you depending on the size of the toothpicks (usually €1.50 for a small toothpick, and €1.90/€2 for a long toothpick). The staff at Lizarran even rang a cowbell when they finished preparing fresh, hot pinchos and then circulated them among the diners. What a great experience. I highly recommend them!

Below: the selection of pinchos at Lizarran in Figueres. Yum!

After feeding our bellies, it was time to feast our eyes on the artworks at the Teatre Museu Dalí. Take a look at the entrance courtyard to the museum, it gives a flavour for what lies within:

One could spend probably a whole hour or longer just looking at the outside of this building. Here's another side of the Teatre that is notable for its "eggs" - a symbol that Dalí was fond of as it represents transformation and birth.

Upon entering the museum proper, one is assaulted with an intense sculpture called "Rainy Day Taxi," a modern statue so complex and huge, it takes centre stage in the inner courtyard. There are even mannequin people inside the taxi. It was not possible to capture the whole sculpture within one camera shot. There's actually a boat suspended atop the column of rubber tires, with "water" dripping from the bottom of the boat. There is also a bust of a woman within the topmost tire (also not shown). I recommend googling this statue if you want to see the thing in its entirety.

 

The museum is semi-circular with the inner courtyard visible from the windows of each level of the building. It was really interesting to be able to see the statue from many viewpoints. Brooke and I started our tour by taking in the many ink sketches that Dalí created in the 1960's and 70's. Most of these works were not identified with placards, but it was nice to take in the work without focusing on its title instead of the work itself. Here's one of my favourites of this type of art that I saw that day:

In the main atrium of the museum, there is a huge (or I should say colossal) painting that takes up an entire wall and faces the "Rainy Day Taxi." It also wasn't identified by a placard, but it was impressive to look at, and stand next to. Look at how tiny I am (bottom centre) next to this painting, and it will give you a clue to the artwork's actual size:

One of the most interesting "pieces" that we saw was the spatial interpretation of "Mae West cum Apartment." Bear with me for a moment and try to picture this: to view the installation, one must climb up a short flight of stairs and look through a lens that is suspended between the legs of an ornamental camel (the camel forms a kind of arch at the apex of the stairs, and has unnaturally long legs - another Dalí standard imagery device). Through the lens, you see objects that alone seem random and unrelated, but come together to form a portrait of Mae West. The original painting is on display in Chicago, this spatial interpretation was completed by the archetech Oscar Tusquets Blanca.

In my mind, the masterpiece of the whole museum is the ceiling fresco in the Wind Palace Room. I was unable to capture the entire ceiling, but here's my best attempt:

Brooke and I stared up at this fresco for a solid ten minutes. There's so much going on in the painting, and the saturation of the colours are really something to behold. I'm not sure what the "official" interpretation of the fresco is, but to me I think it symbolizes the shared dream state of Dalí (figure on the right, easily identified by his outrageous mustache) and his wife Gala (woman on the left, and who was in many of Dalí's works). Whatever the meaning, the painting is phenomenal.

The painting of Antoni Pitxot that captured my attention the most was this one (also not identified with a placard). I love his use of rocklike formations to create human forms, including reflections. All of his exhibited works are of a similar style, but this one really stood out.

The €12 entry fee (adult) to the museum also included entry into the Dalí-Joies (or jewels). In this exhibit, Dalí uses precious and semi-precious materials to create wearable and sculptural pieces that are sometimes bizarre and sometimes stunning to behold. To gain access to the exhibit, you leave the main museum, go around the corner, and into a dark room where sketches are places next to all the pieces which are kept behind glass. Dalí himself thought that using precious materials like gold, silver, rubies etc shouldn't be limited to jewellers, that these materials could be used to form interesting (and at times arresting) art pieces. Here is his somewhat creepy but fascinating brooch which is comprised of rubies and pearls:

After spending about four hours or so in the museum, our brains were "full" and we headed down to La Rambla of Figueres to locate Dalí's self-portrait on the ground. It's amazing that his brain enabled him to draw reflections of things that could be righted by a convex surface. There were a small sample of these in the museum, but my favourite is his self-portrait on the street. Definitely a man with genius. 

The four hours of train was worth the visit to this town and the museum. I don't think I've ever had a unique artistic experience quite like this one! It was also good to get outside Barçelona and see another town within Catalonia. A big thank you to Brooke who came with me, it's always more fun to share this kind of day trip adventure.

Barça! . . . . . . Lona!

I spent a very full and fun week in Barçelona, the capital of Catalonia. After alighting from the overnight train from Granada, I felt a little discombobulated and disorientated. I felt like the ground was rolling under my feet - 11 hours on a train will do that to you. I was glad I had booked a bed on board. I located the metro and took the green line to Passeig de Grácia, and the first thing I saw was this:

Above: Gaudi's Casa Battló on the "block of discord." Good morning Barçelona! The block is so-called because of the discord between the various styles of modernisme in architecture from house to house. They really do clash.

I settled into my hostel, had breakfast and relaxed on the rooftop terrace which has a wee swimming pool. It was nice to strip off my travelling cloths and feel some sunshine on my skin. I then resolved to get myself orientated in this big city and went for a walk with two girls from my hostel dorm (Sant Jordi Rock Palace). We were hunting for Barça's best gelato shop, a place called Gelaaati di Marco. It was really amazing. I tried mango and avocado flavours - so good!

Below: the gorgeous assortment of gelato. I wanted to try them all, but only managed the one visit.

Afterwards, we traipsed over to see the Mercat de la Boqueria, a covered marketplace which sells just about every foodstuff imaginable. From fat figs, dates, and beautiful juicy tomatoes, fresh eggs and fish, to rabbits (with or without fur), and a great big hog's head. The market is located just off La Rambla near Liceu metro station. 

Above: at least six different types of mushrooms, and stings of drying chillies. 

Below: a tower of figs tempts me, while the sweets and sugared fruits are almost too pretty to eat. Cherry tomatoes look so plump as to be fit to burst.

Trying to make the most of my first day in Barça, I took the metro up towards Park Güell, often referred to as "Gaudi's park" as he designed the whole thing. Originally, it was pitched as a housing development but it failed and only two houses were built - one which was Gaudi's but housed his aging father and ailing niece (his only surviving relatives at the time). I was given poor advice not to pay the €8.50 to go on the platform, and so walked around the park instead and took snapshots of it from the sides. I didn't mind not having to compete for a view with all the milling tourists. The park is Gaudi's attempt to harmonize nature and artifice. It's a lovely place to have a stroll, listen to some buskers, and get panoramic views of the city.

Above: the platform with mosaics and columns designed by António Gaudi. A huge mosaic lizard sits nestled between the two staircases leading up to the platform. It's impossible to see it here due to all the people, so google it if you want to see what it looks like.  

Below: the view of the Torre Agbar (left) and the Sagrada Familia (right) from Park Güell. 

My second day in Barçelona was spent at the beach in a nearby tiny town called Sant Paul de Mar. A hostel friend recommended it as being both beautiful and less busy than the beaches in downtown Barça. I had a solid 5 hours of sun, and a chilly swim in the Mediterranean. The train was an hour each way and was about €9 return.

Wanting to know more about Gaudi and the Modernisme movement in Barçelona, I partook in a paid walking tour organized by Sandeman's New Barcelona group. The walking tour was about 2 hours and was well worth the €12 I spent on it. The guide (Leon) really knew his stuff. He gave us political, economic, and stylistic background to the Modernisme movement, and some hilariously insightful stories into Gaudi himself. We started at the Palau de la Musica Catalana, a behemoth of a building that is too wide for the street it was built on. The palace was built by Lluis Domènich i Montaner and completed in 1908. This building contains many of the elements of Modernisme  - use of glass, mosaics, Catalan national emblems (roses, mulberry blooms/leaves) etc. it was damn near impossible to get a decent shot of the place.

Above: our guide pointed out these address signs from olden days. The tiles depict what guild was housed at that location. Nowadays, the current businesses are required to have as similar occupations as shown in the illustrations. The potters (left) is now a fine ceramics shop, but as lamp-lighting is a thing of the past, there is no modern-day equivalent.

The walking tour continued up the the block of discord, where we learned a bit about the three Modernisme buildings that dominate the block. Each building was designed by a different architect, once friends turned bitter rivals in the market to build the next great/bizarre edifice. It's funny to note that Gaudi was often commissioned for designs that he flat-out ignored (or twisted to his own purposes) and just designed whatever he wanted. For example, for the Casa Batlló, he was requested to design a piano room for the family to house their expensive grand piano. Gaudi designed a piano-shaped room that was exactly the dimensions of his client's piano, this rendering the room useless for its original requested purpose.

Below: stained glass from inside the doorway of Casa Amatller. 

Unfortunately, the Casa Milà (more often known as La Pedrera) was covered in scaffolding do it was impossible to take any worthwhile photos. However, the rooftop is said to be the most interesting part of the house. The figures and shapes on the roof actually inspired George Lucas for his Star Wars movies (storm troopers and Tattooine). Oh, and that piano from the Casa Batlló, he put it in this other house and charged the wealthy widow for it! Gaudi was definitely a character!

The walking tour ended with a exposition of the exterior of the famous Sagrada Familia (or Gaudi's cathedral). The task of building the cathedral was given to Gaudi during 1883 after neo-gothic foundations had already been laid. It was to become Gaudi's life work. He was a deeply religious man who went to church every day. He spent the last seven years of his life holed up in the crypt, and he poured all of his savings into the building of this most unconventional cathedral. Unfortunately, Gaudi died before he could see the bulk of his brain-child realized. He was struck by a tram as he was crossing a street to go to mass in June 1926. He had no identification, and as he had been living like a hermit in the crypt of the Sagrada Familia, no one recognized him. He was sent to a hospital for poor people. Two days later, he was recognized as he had a drawing of the Sagrada in his pocket. He was offered to be taken to a hospital for the rich, but declined on the grounds that that particular hospital had been designed by his rival. Pride! The genius died only five hours later. At the time of his death, only one tower had been completed on the Nativity Façade. He is buried in the crypt.

Above: the Nativity Façade with cranes looming overhead to complete the other towers. Work on the cathedral stalled until after the Spanish civil war, and then again until after the Barçelona summer Olympics in 1992, when the world was captivated by this bizarre and beautiful church.

Unfortunately, during the 1930's some anarchists broke into the Sagrada, and destroyed/burned all of Gaudi's oringal plans for the cathedral's completion. Architects like Josep Maria Subirachs (who designed the Passion Façade) are literally flying blind when it comes to the ongoing construction of the Sagrada. Basically, the Friends of Gaudi, instructed the builders and architects to take everything they knew about Gaudi, the Greek bible, and Modernisme and to "go for it." It's interesting to see how the basilica develops. Completion is currently slated for 2026 - the 100 year anniversary of Gaudi's death. Given that 3000 people are working on the project, they might make this deadline.

Above and below: two Sagrada Famila "selfies." Can you see my face above? This is in the doorway of faith on the Nativity Façade.  

Below: the ceiling of the Sagrada Familia. The design is that of Palm trees, which represent sacrifice. The outer aisles are "laurels" which represent wisdom. Gaudi wanted the inside of his cathedral to literally be a forest as he was inspired by God's architecture - nature.

Below: medallions high up on the pillars for the four evangelists. And a statue of Gaudi in the middle. He hated having his photo taken, so few likenesses exist.

I was expecting the inside of the Sagrada to be dark and gloomy like most cathedrals around Europe. Not so with this one. The interior has so much light, and colour from the many stained glass windows around the entire perimeter of the place. Sunlight streamed through the stained glass to project colours everywhere. It was something to behold.

 After visiting the Sagrada Familia, me and two lovely Vancourites from my hostel (hi Brooke & Kat!) went in search of good tapas. Our walking tour guide told us about a place called Tosca opposite the Palau de la Musica, and he was bang on. For €11 we each had three tapas, a glass of wine, and desert/coffee. The tapas were best I've had since Sevilla. 

We booked tickets to see Manuel Gonzales play Spanish guitar that night in the Palau de la Musica, and headed back to the hostel to take a siesta. The concert cost €28 and it was well worth it. We got dolled up and just got there as the concert was beginning. Mr. Gonzales is considered to be the world's leading Spanish guitarist according to the New York Times. After being transfixed by his talent, we took some snaps of the sumptuous interior of the music hall before being shooed out by the ushers. I bought a CD of Mr. Gonzales music, asked him to sign the CD and got a photo with him. It was a great day.

Above: Manuel Gonzales mesmerizes the audience with his musical range and skill on six strings.

Below: the stunning stained glass ceiling of the Palau de la Musica. I could stare at it for hours.

The next day was Halloween, and I decided to strike out on my own and join a walking tour of the gothic quarter and old part of town. The walking tour was free and lasted about three hours. We took in a number of churches, an intact Roman burial ground, and the Born quarter with its awesome graffiti/street art.

Below: the steps to the royal palace in Barçelona. These are the same steps that Christopher Colmbus ran up to tell Isabel and Ferdinard of his "discovery" of the Americas and all the riches to be had.

An interesting story that our guide shared: during the Spanish Civil War, George Orwell fought on the side of the republicans/resistance. The resistance were apparently considering bombing the Sagrada Familia as the church sided with General (and later dictator) Franco. They eventually decided against it. However, later when the war was over, Orwell said that they should have bombed the Sagrada as "it is the single most ugly building I have ever laid eyes one." Well, we know how he feels about it! 

The other thing my walking tour guide talked about was Catalan nationalism/the independent movement. She called it an exercise in "Pride vs. Practicality." Many Catalans do not identify as Spanish, and their culture and language has previously been repressed in an attempt to keep the Catalans under control. Since the death of General Franco, Catalan is no longer illegal to speak. In fact, most signs in Barçelona are written in three languages: first Catalan, then Spanish, then English. The recent Scottish referendum was to be the model for Catalonia to follow. But we all know how that went. It will be interesting to watch what happens politically in the coming years here.

Below: a Barçelona resident displays their flag of independence from their window. These flags, as well as the official Catalan (non-separatist) flags abound, sometimes competing with each other on the same building façade. Clearly Barça is split on the issue of independence.

After the tour, I hustled back to the hostel to have a nap and prepare for Halloween with my roommates. My makeup was my costume - sugar skull inspired from Mexico's Day of the Dead. I crawled into bed around 4am after going to a bar then a nightclub (Barça has great nightlife). The next day I was completely hungover, but did manage to finally get out and see he fountain/light show at Mount Montjuic (free on Friday and Saturday nights from 8-9pm in autumn/winter). It was a great way to say goodbye to this beautiful city. I'll be back again some day...