Dali: The Work, The Man (Descharnes, 1997).

Dali: The Work, The Man
Descharnes, 1997

This is easily the largest Dali book in my collection.  Check out the stats:

• 14.5" tall;
• 10.5" wide;
• 2" thick;
• 9 pounds;
• 455 pages;
• more than 1,110 illustrations,
• 672 in full-color.

Wow!  You need a big table space just to set this book to flip through it.  Actually, this book really needs its own large table to be properly set up and enjoyed.

The book is organized into 12 chronological time periods of Dali's life.  Primarily, this is a picture book--it is replete with illustrations and photographs on every page.

For the avid Dali fan, this book holds few surprises.  However, it is comprehensive, gigantic, and colorful, making it one of the best Dali books out there.

I've tried to provide some examples of the more unique content of this book.  You will notice that it avails itself of the large-scale format to occasionally present an image in full-page size.

The book is readily available on internet book sites, but the cost is far more than you can expect to pay when the occasional online auction comes up.  The demand is low, so you can expect to pay fewer then $20 at auction, whereas you can pay 2 to 3 times that to buy it outright on the internet.

My advice is to hold out for an auction to snatch this one up cheap.