Daddy Longlegs of the Evening - Hope!
Daddy Longlegs is also significant for being the first painting Dali completed in the UnitedStates after he and Gala sought refuge here during World War II. No longer part of the Surrealist group, Dali's homeland was under siege, and he found himself facing an unknown future.
A grotesque scene unfolds, dominated by Dali's gelatinous self-portrait in the center, surrounded by the elements of war. A winged child shields his eyes, yet points to the horrors unfolding: a cannon shoots an eyeless putrefying horse, while a soft airplane oozes to the ground. A sculpture of Nike, the Greek Winged Goddess of Victory, rises in bandages from the deflated plane. The Dali figure holds a soft cello that is no longer capable of making music; inkwells sprout from the body, suggesting the eventual treaties that will resolve the crisis.