Sunday Dalí: Diurnal Illusion: The Shadow of a Grand Piano Approaching, 1931. Oil on canvas, 34.5 x 25.4 cm.

Part one of a multi-part exploration of Dalí’s infatuation with pianos.

Here we see a couple embracing — one is clearly a woman see from the back — the other is ambiguous and appears to be a part of the rocky landscape. The woman’s back skin is pulled and poked through as if the embrace were happening inside her torso. Further investigation of her back reveals the shape of a shoe and a goblet protruding from within. The couple is flanked by the ominous shadow from the lid of a grand piano.