''Rainy Taxi'' (1938), also known as ''Mannequin Rotting in a Taxi-Cab'', is a three-dimensional artwork created by
Salvador Dalí, consisting of an actual automobile with two
mannequin occupants.
A male
chauffeur
A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.
Originally, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to speciali ...
with a
shark head is in the front seat, and a female sits in the back seat. A system of pipes causes "rainfall" within the taxi. The female wears an evening dress, her hair is tousled, and
lettuce and
chicory grow around her. Live
snails crawl across her body.
The piece was first displayed in 1938 at the Galerie Beaux-Arts in Paris of the
Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme The Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme was an exhibition by surrealist artists that took place from January 17 to February 24, 1938, in the generously equipped Galérie Beaux-Arts, run by Georges Wildenstein, at 140, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Hon ...
, organised by
André Breton
André Robert Breton (; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first ''Surrealist Manifesto'' (''Manifeste du surréalisme'') o ...
and
Paul Éluard. The main hall of the Exposition was designed by
Marcel Duchamp and
Wolfgang Paalen, who was responsible for the supervision of the water installations.
[Andreas Neufert, Auf Liebe und Tod, Das Leben des Surrrealisten Wolfgang Paalen, Berlin (Parthas) 2015, p. 234ff]
A reconstruction of the original installation is installed in the open courtyard of the
Dalí Theatre and Museum
The Dalí Theatre and Museum ( ca, Teatre-Museu Dalí, ; es, Teatro-Museo Dalí) is a museum dedicated to the artist Salvador Dalí in his home town of Figueres, in Catalonia, Spain. Salvador Dalí lived there from 1984 to 1989, and is buried in ...
in
Figueres,
Catalonia, Spain.
See also
*
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...
*''
Mae West Lips Sofa''
*''
Lobster Telephone''
References
External links
Salvador Dali’s ''The Rainy Taxi'' (image)
Surrealist works
1938 sculptures
Salvador Dalí
Sculptures in France
Collection of the Dalí Theatre and Museum
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