Salvador Dali’s largest work to be auctioned
The work was conceived in 1939 as a stage set for a surrealist ballet at the New York Opera House
Considered Spanish surrealist master Salvador Dalí‘s largest-ever painting — conceived in 1939 as a stage set for a surrealist ballet at New York Opera House — Bacchanale will come under the hammer at Bonhams’ “Surrealist Sale” on March 26. Arriving in the auction circuit from a private collection, the work features 13 large pieces with a backdrop, and four sets of canvases, with a total size of more than 20 x 30 meters. The central motif has the Mount of Venus with a large swan to symbolise sin and desire, and the painting also includes elements such as a faceless reclining woman, a motif that was also seen in his 1939 painting L’Énigme sans fin. The work was originally built on a wooden frame that is now reportedly lost. “Dalí defined it as his first paranoiac-critical ballet, a work in which he poured all his ideas about a total work of art: he wrote the libretto and designed the set and costumes,” reads a note on the Bonhams website.
The premiere of the production took place on November 9, 1939. It had Dali collaborate with the likes of Leonide Massine, choreographer and director of the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, and Coco Chanel, who designed some of the costumes and accessories. The score was an adaptation of Wagner’s 1845 opera, Tannhauser. Dali, though, was unable to attend the premiere due to conflict in Europe.
Exhibited for the first time in 2023 at the Salon de Arte Moderno in Madrid, and in 2024 at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid as the backdrop for 10 performances curated by Jaime Vallaure and Tania Arias, the work was also on view in 2025 at the Fabbrica del Vapore in Milan.
The Bonhams sale also includes paintings and works on paper by other French, Belgian and Italian masters such as Leonor Fini, Jane Graverol, Valentine Hugo, André Masson, Man Ray and Francis Picabia.
In a release, Emilie Millon, Head of Bonhams’ Impressionist and Modern Art department in Paris, commented: “For the fourth year running, Bonhams celebrates the enthralling world of surrealism with a dedicated spring auction in Paris. The sale will feature works by many of the most innovative and leading figures of Surrealism, from Francis Picabia to Man Ray, showcasing the movement’s impact and legacy. We are happy to offer at auction Bacchanale, a stage set, but above all, it is the largest painting created by Salvador Dalí for the New York Opera House, a priceless fantasy that can become a reality for any collector.”
Considered Spanish surrealist master Salvador Dalí‘s largest-ever painting — conceived in 1939 as a stage set for a surrealist ballet at New York Opera House — Bacchanale will come under the hammer at Bonhams’ “Surrealist Sale” on March 26. Arriving in the auction circuit from a private collection, the work features 13 large pieces with a backdrop, and four sets of canvases, with a total size of more than 20 x 30 meters. The central motif has the Mount of Venus with a large swan to symbolise sin and desire, and the painting also includes elements such as a faceless reclining woman, a motif that was also seen in his 1939 painting L’Énigme sans fin. The work was originally built on a wooden frame that is now reportedly lost. “Dalí defined it as his first paranoiac-critical ballet, a work in which he poured all his ideas about a total work of art: he wrote the libretto and designed the set and costumes,” reads a note on the Bonhams website.
The premiere of the production took place on November 9, 1939. It had Dali collaborate with the likes of Leonide Massine, choreographer and director of the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, and Coco Chanel, who designed some of the costumes and accessories. The score was an adaptation of Wagner’s 1845 opera, Tannhauser. Dali, though, was unable to attend the premiere due to conflict in Europe.
Exhibited for the first time in 2023 at the Salon de Arte Moderno in Madrid, and in 2024 at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid as the backdrop for 10 performances curated by Jaime Vallaure and Tania Arias, the work was also on view in 2025 at the Fabbrica del Vapore in Milan.
The Bonhams sale also includes paintings and works on paper by other French, Belgian and Italian masters such as Leonor Fini, Jane Graverol, Valentine Hugo, André Masson, Man Ray and Francis Picabia.
In a release, Emilie Millon, Head of Bonhams’ Impressionist and Modern Art department in Paris, commented: “For the fourth year running, Bonhams celebrates the enthralling world of surrealism with a dedicated spring auction in Paris. The sale will feature works by many of the most innovative and leading figures of Surrealism, from Francis Picabia to Man Ray, showcasing the movement’s impact and legacy. We are happy to offer at auction Bacchanale, a stage set, but above all, it is the largest painting created by Salvador Dalí for the New York Opera House, a priceless fantasy that can become a reality for any collector.”
