I'm sitting on the terrace of Hotel Lligat.. If I look to my right I see the roof of Salvador Dalí's house with its enigmatic tower pierced by pitchforks and topped with an egg.
It's quiet here. The boats are anchored for the night. I've noticed that people row out to their boats, so there is only a slight sound of oars slipping through the water.
Voices carry easily over the water. I think there must not be any such thing as a private conversation here.
I've spent the last hour or two sitting here enjoying a leisurely dinner, watching the sky and sea change colors with the coming night.
Gala may have been Dalí's muse, but she had some serious competition in Port Lligat. Looking across the harbor the islands that rise are familiar to anyone who has seen his paintings. The water in the harbor is still and reflects boats, sky, and the errant wader alike. Again I can't help but think of those paintings with their watery reflections.
I toured Dalí and Gala's house today. The sense of humor reflected in the belongings and the way they are displayed pleased me immensely.
Opening the door of the house a stuffed polar bear, a gift from Edward James, greets the visitor, He brandishes a lamp in his right paw and a basket holding the traditional red Catalan cap called barretina, at his feet is a collection of Dalí's walking sticks.
A guide takes you through the yellow room with its table holding the snail clock that Dalí had made at Tiffany's in New York. He said he liked the snail because it reminded him of the shape of Sigmund Freud's head. On the wall is a mirror mounted at an angle so that it can reflect the first light of morning onto Dalí's waking face. Port Lligat is the most easterly tip of this Catalonian peninsula. Dalí said he wanted to be the first man in Spain to see the sun in the morning. Apparently he fulfilled this wish daily while he lived here.
There is a large bird cage that, when Dalí lived here, contained canaries to sing to him. Mounted on the wall to the right is a tiny cricket cage. Dali said he liked the sound of crickets and of nature in general.
The studio workspace is interesting due to mount that Dalí had made for his easel. It allowed the easel to be lowered down below floor level so that he could work sitting down. I find myself wondering if this is not part of the source for
Chuck Close's easel arrangement, although Dali's arrangement was for comfort and Chuck Close's is a matter of necessity. There is a smaller easel set up over to the side. Most interesting was the collection of 3-D glasses, you know the ones with one red and one green lense.
There is a small room with all of the supplies that Dalí needed to continue painting. Cadaqués and port Lligat are difficult to get to by land, so there would be no quick trip to the art supply store from here. If you didn't have what you needed it could be either a tragedy or a happy accident.
Up a small flight of stairs is a dark little space with a full set up for making jewelry.
There is a dressing room that Gala lined with pictures of Dalí and herself and the most important moments in their lives, meeting various celebrities, happy moments with friends and family, and images of people who were important to Dali like Velasquez. As for the last, just look at his mustache and I think you'll understand a part of the attraction.
I think my favorite room in the house is the round room inspired, the guide said, by a sea urchin. This room was Dalí's gift to Gala, a retreat for her. The thing I love about it is that he designed it for the acoustics. It echoes in the most extraordinary way, but then it was designed by an extraordinary man for an extraordinary woman.
The most indescribable part of the entire place is the garden out back. There is no way I can even begin to do it justice. I took photo after photo until I ran my battery down. Every time I thought I had seen everything I spotted something new, an owl, a giraffe, another Michelin man, a lion, a crutch supporting a stone. It just kept coming.
I'll let a few of the pictures speak for themselves.
Meanwhile, back here at the Hotel Port Lligat, I feel incredibly privileged to be able to be here. As I sit on the terrace night is finally fully upon me. There are mosquitos here that rival the ones back home, although they don't seem to bite so hard. Stars are out. The moon has been here with me, just a sliver reading over my shoulder.
I've been typing this up courtesy of the glowing screen of my iPad. I'm going to head down to the wifi area in the lobby to post this.
I wish you all, wherever you are a peaceful night and a wonderful tomorrow.
Bona nit!
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