Step Inside Dalí’s Surreal World: A Journey Through the Dalí Theatre-Museum, Figueres
Exploring Salvador Dalí’s largest surrealistic creation, from the burnt-out theatre to the iconic Mae West Room, and stepping into a labyrinth of imagination.
For years, I had dreamed of standing in the surreal world of Salvador Dalí, a world I had only seen in books and documentaries. The Dalí Theatre-Museum in Figueres, his final resting place and largest work of art, was the ultimate destination. Finally, this week, I made the two-hour train journey from Barcelona, the anticipation building with every passing minute.
Arriving around noon, I saw it—the audacious, bread-adorned facade. Even from a distance, the building pulsated with the unmistakable energy of its creator. As I walked around the exterior, I took it all in. The presence of Dalí was palpable. Golden-mannequin figures stood poised on the facade, while giant eggs—symbols of rebirth and renewal that were a recurring motif in his work—crowned the rooftop. These sculptures hinted at the surreal adventure that awaited inside. Although my ticket was timed for 1 p.m., the museum wasn't crowded, so I was allowed to enter a little earlier.
Entering through what seemed like a very ordinary door, I stepped straight into the open-air courtyard and felt as though I had crossed a threshold into another world—the world of Dalí. The transformation of the building is spectacular, just as the artist envisioned, and it immediately made me fall in love with the place. There is so much to explore, it feels endless.
To truly understand the museum, one must understand the man who created it. Salvador Dalí was born in Figueres in 1904. He was an artistic prodigy from a young age, and his early works demonstrate a fascination with Impressionism and Cubism, although he would eventually find his true calling in Surrealism. He was a flamboyant showman, a master of self-promotion who famously said, "Every morning when I wake up, I experience an exquisite joy—the joy of being Salvador Dalí." This blend of genius and theatricality is woven into the very fabric of the museum.
The building itself has a rich history. The Dalí Theatre-Museum, the largest surrealist object in the world, occupies the former Municipal Theatre, a nineteenth-century construction where Dalí had his first public exhibition as a teenager. The theatre was a significant landmark for the city, but it was tragically destroyed by fire at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Only the main entrance, the vestibule, and the grand hall remained. For decades, the site lay in ruins.
In 1960, the mayor of Figueres proposed that Dalí donate a work to the city. Dalí, with his characteristic flair for the dramatic, refused. Instead, he made an audacious offer: he would create an entire museum on the very site of the ruined theatre. It was a perfect, full-circle moment for Dalí, and as he explained:
"Where, if not in my own city, should the most extravagant and solid examples of my art remain, where else? The Municipal Theatre, or what was left of it, seemed to me very appropriate, for three reasons: first, because I am an eminently theatrical painter; second, because the Theatre is in front of the church where I was baptized; and third, because it was precisely in the lobby of the Theatre that I had my first exhibition of paintings."
The museum consists of two main areas. The first is the burnt-out shell of the theatre, which Dalí transformed into the Theatre-Museum according to his own design (rooms one to eighteen). Every part of this space is a work of art in itself, forming a single, cohesive, surrealistic object. The second area consists of rooms added through later extensions, including a crypt that houses Dalí's tomb. He wanted his museum to be "like a single block, a labyrinth, a great surrealist object… a totally theatrical museum. The people who come to see it will leave with the sensation of having had a theatrical dream."
From the moment you enter, Dalí’s obsessions and interests are clear. Science is celebrated in the Hommage to Newton, academic art in the sculptures by Meissonier, modern innovation in Wolf Vostell’s TV-Obelisk, and Catalan thought through the monument to Francesc Pujols, which also contains the figure of Ramon Llull. The museum immerses you in Dalí’s memory, with each work, figure, and event offering insight into his complex universe.
The vestibule, accessed through glass doors with surreal iron panels—some with erotic connotations—prepares visitors for the spectacle beyond. Beyond the vestibule lies the central courtyard, an open-air garden built on the former stalls of the Municipal Theatre. At its centre stands a vertical installation with the imposing Cadillac, Ernst Fuchs’ The Great Esther pulling a Trajan column made of tires, the marble bust of François Girardon, Michelangelo’s Dalinized Slave, Gala’s boat, and a black umbrella. Together, Dalí called this ensemble the largest surrealist monument in the world.
The walls of the theatre are populated with mannequins, grotesque monsters, eight bas-reliefs from the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, and metaphysical washbasins resembling angels. Beyond the glass doors, the stage hints at the ballet Labyrinth, crowned by the geodesic dome—an emblem of the Theatre-Museum and of Figueres itself. This awe-inspiring space, designed by architect Emilio Pérez Piñero, is dominated by the backdrop from Dalí’s oil painting for the ballet, based on the myth of Theseus and Ariadne.
Dalí’s touch is everywhere—from plaster sculptures gazing down from the dome to installations on the former stage. This room, lined with red velvet and intentionally intimate, holds some of the museum’s most important and iconic works. Dalí arranged everything without chronological order, creating intriguing analogies and contrasts that explore art history, science, his muse Gala, and himself.
The Fishmongers’ Hall, once a local market, now showcases works from across Dalí’s career. Early pieces like Satirical Composition (1923), inspired by Matisse, coexist with later works such as Othello Dreaming Venice (1982) and The Happy Horse (1980). Stereoscopic works such as Structure of DNA (c. 1975-76) and Athens is Burning! (1979-80) play with optical perception, while the Mae West Room demonstrates his three-dimensional transformation of a two-dimensional image, including the iconic lip-shaped sofa—a collaboration with Elsa Schiaparelli and Lluís Llongueras’ wig that entered the Guinness Book of Records.
The Palau del Vent Room, with its painted ceiling, offers a theatrical paradox: clouds and sky appear, but the illusion reveals earth and sea instead, culminating in a mystical submarine by Narcís Monturiol and La Cierva’s autogyro. Every detail reminds you of Dalí’s unique genius, theatrical flair, and lifelong devotion to his art.
Visiting the Dalí Theatre-Museum is not just a museum trip—it is a journey into Dalí’s mind, a surreal adventure through space, history, and imagination. For someone like me who had dreamed of this visit for years, it was a truly unforgettable experience. Have you been there? What was your impression of this place? Please share your thoughts in the comments area. Until next time!
I have put together a short video from the visit as well. Watch it below:
Hola , Este Museo Al Igual Que La Obra De Salvador Dali , Es Impresionante. Lo He Visitado Varias Veces , Y En Cada Nueva Visita , Encuentro Alguna Joya Nueva. Un Saludo.
This whisked me back to our own visit. Excellent photography and a fantastic write up. Love the museum lived up to your keen, long-felt anticipation. It truly is a remarkable insight to a remarkable creativity.