Nature morte aux pommes 1923

This is Salvador Dalí’s "Nature morte aux pommes," a still life he painted in 1922. Dalí created this work in his late teens; he was exploring the styles of impressionism and post-impressionism, as well as cubism. Looking at this painting, I can't help but think about the idea of Catalonia, Dalí’s place of birth and lifelong home. The apples are visually grounded, but at the same time, they appear to float, seemingly unbound by gravity. There is tension between these states that brings to mind his complex and enduring connection to his homeland. Dalí once said, “The fact that I myself, at the moment of painting, do not understand my own pictures, does not mean that these pictures have no meaning.” Ultimately, this early still life is less about the apples themselves and more about the artist's search for identity, a journey that would lead him to become one of the most recognizable figures in 20th-century art.