Shirley Temple, The Youngest, Most Sacred Monster of the Cinema in Her Time

Infobox Painting|

title=Shirley Temple,
The Youngest, Most Sacred Monster
of the Cinema in Her Time
artist=Salvador Dalí
year=1939
type=Gouache, pastel and collage on cardboard
height=75
width=100
city=Rotterdam
museum=Museum Boijmans van Beuningen

"Shirley Temple, The Youngest, Most Sacred Monster of the Cinema in Her Time" (or "Shirley Temple, The Youngest, Most Sacred Monster of Contemporary Cinema"), also known as the "Barcelona Sphinx" [http://cataleg.salvador-dali.org/cataleg-2/eng/ffitxa.php?num=509&
] (accessed 1 June 2007)] is a 1939 artwork in gouache, pastel and collage on cardboard by surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. It measures 75 cm x 100 cm (29.5 inches x 39.5 inches). It is housed in The Netherlands, at the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam's principal art gallery.

It was first shown at an exhibition held at the Julien Levy Gallery, New York, from March 21 to April 18, 1939 (although the exhibition catalogue does not mention the painting, an article in the "New York Times" mentions its presence)."The New York Times", March 26, 1939] It has also been exhibited in 1983 at the Palau Reial de Pedralbes in Barcelona, in 1985 at the Palais des Beaux Arts in Charleroi, and again in Barcelona in 2004, at the CaixaForum. From June 1 to September 9, 2007 it was one of around 100 Dali works on display at the Tate Modern in London as part of the "Dali And Film" exhibition. [http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/070531/entertainment/entertainment_britain_spain_art_film_dali "Dali's silver screen surrealism explored in new London show"] Yahoo! News in Canada (accessed June 1, 2007))]

It depicts the head of child star Shirley Temple, taken from a newspaper photograph, superimposed on the body of a red lioness with obvious breasts and white claws. On top of her head is a bat. Surrounding the Shirley-lioness are a human skull and other bones, presumed to be from her latest kill. At the bottom of the painting is a trompe-l'œil label that reads: "Shirley!. at last in Technicolor." [http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue3/salvadordali.htm "Salvador Dalí - the first pop star of painting"] Tate etc (accessed 1 June 2007)]

The painting is thought by few to be a satire of the sexualization of child stars by Hollywood. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,2092949,00.html "Most sacred monsters"] Mark Lawson, The Guardian, 1 June 2007 (accessed 1 June 2007)] [http://www.cinema.ucla.edu/women/creed/creed4.html Baby Bitches From Hell: Monstrous-Little Women in Film] UCLA (accessed 1 June 2007)]

Notes

External links

* [http://www.boijmans.nl/ Museum Boijmans van Beuningen]