This work is accompanied by a certificate from Nicolas Descharnes dated 31 July 2017, archive number d6926.

John Peter Moore, a former British Army captain, first met Salvador Dalí in 1956 while working with film producer and director Alexander Korda in Rome. Moore arranged for Dalí to be paid in cash for a portrait of Laurence Olivier as Richard III. The two developed a close friendship.

In 1960 Dalí employed Moore as his personal secretary and from 1965 as his business manager. Together with Dalí’s wife Gala, they travelled regularly to New York in winter, Paris in spring and Cadaqués in northern Spain during summer.

Moore played a significant role in expanding Dalí’s commercial reach through merchandising initiatives. Reflecting later on this period he remarked, “I was Goldfinger to Dalí. I suggested he make graphics, lithographs, bed sheets, shoes, socks, ties, anything saleable.”

Although replaced in 1975, Moore maintained good relations with Dalí and Gala. In 1978 he and his wife Catherine Perrot opened the Perrot-Moore Museum in Cadaqués to exhibit works from their collection. Some were gifts from the artist while others were acquired through dealers, collectors or auction.

In 2003, aged 85 and amid scrutiny surrounding aspects of his reputation, Moore closed the museum. Having no heirs, he dispersed the collection. The majority of works were sold at a major Paris auction organised by Artcurial.

Works originating from this source carry a direct historical link to Dalí himself. Most examples bear the Perrot-Moore Museum stamp, which is present on this work.

The work is presented in a bespoke Cassetta frame constructed from two mouldings. It features a double black float mount and UV filtration glazing to ensure long term preservation and optimal presentation.

During the 1950s Salvador Dalí entered one of the most pivotal phases of his career, a period he described as “nuclear mysticism.”

Having gained international recognition as a leading Surrealist in the 1930s and 1940s, Dalí increasingly distanced himself from the Surrealist movement. His focus shifted towards religion, science and classical technique.

He combined meticulous Renaissance inspired draftsmanship with contemporary developments in atomic theory and quantum physics, merging Catholic mysticism with post-atomic scientific thought. For Dalí, the atomic age revealed that matter was not solid but composed of invisible particles, reinforcing rather than diminishing spiritual belief.

The 1950s produced some of Dalí’s most technically refined and symbolically complex paintings:

The Madonna of Port Lligat 1950 and 1952

Christ of Saint John of the Cross 1951

Galatea of the Spheres 1952

The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory 1954

The Sacrament of the Last Supper 1955

These works demonstrate his synthesis of sacred imagery, geometry and atomic fragmentation.

Dalí also undertook major illustration commissions during this decade. Most notably he produced one hundred watercolours for Dante’s Divine Comedy between 1951 and 1964. He illustrated additional literary and religious texts including Don Quixote and biblical themes, releasing limited edition prints that remain highly regarded.

Dalí and Gala resided primarily in Port Lligat, where he developed his distinctive coastal home and studio. He continued to cultivate his theatrical public persona and expanded his international presence, particularly in the United States.

Major exhibitions were held across Europe and America throughout the decade. Dalí strengthened relationships with American collectors and institutions, consolidating his status as one of the most recognisable artists of the twentieth century.

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