The beautiful Salvador Dali lithographs of 1980’s have a fascinating story and
background.
Back then they were being sold as ‘Originals’ and they were sold for as much as
$3,000 apiece… Today they are considered Salvador Dali ‘Afters’. After all these
years, they are some of the most collectible lithographs and they were authorized
by Dali…
Dali’s popularity and carelessness contributed to a monstrous market of counterfeit
Dali’s. Some with real Dali signatures and a whole lot that were not. Albert Fields Official
Catalog is the detailed place to go to check.
Many of these fake pencil signatures were on authorized lithographs. Again, many were
not. Today, it is a rabbit hunt for collectors. Mostly because the Lithographs are fantastic
and they are accessible.
…and again Dali authorized. Which is the controversy because the contracts were abused
and many went to jail because of that and that’s part of the mystique of this period.
So…It is possible to own a Salvador Dali. But it may have a caveat attached and definitely an
interesting story.
Let’s dive in a little. In early 1981 Salvador Dali signed some contracts to free himself from some existing
contracts. There were fresh scandals brewing, including one involving stunning irregularities in
the reproduction of his work that were highlighted by the surfacing of purportedly false
Dali lithographs in California, Canada and Italy.
Dali wanted to put a stop to this. Salvador Dalí was told that an enormous wave of unauthorized, forged, and pirated reproductions of his work—fueled by his own practice of signing thousands of blank sheets of paper—had flooded the market. This was supposed to be managed but it was not.
But, the 11th-hour attempt to carve out an independent, self-directed and vaguely
organized financial situation threatened, however, to disrupt a global network of
makeshift contracts, sub-contracts and shadowy companies that have converted Salvador Dali into a
highly lucrative, multimillion dollar industry, not always within strict boundaries of artistic
standards or normal business ethics.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Salvador Dalí signed a series of complex and
often conflicting contracts with several international publishers. This period was marked
by a “blitz” of business deals negotiated by his aides, which later led to significant legal
turmoil.
These turned out to be controversial contracts for lithographs and graphic works during
the 1980s, primarily to secure fast and lucrative payments during a period of declining
health and financial uncertainty.
So Dalí experienced a significant loss of control over his business and artistic legacy
during the final decade of his life. This period was marked by physical decline, the death
of his primary manager (his wife Gala Dali; she died on June 10, 1982), and the rise of
power-hungry associates who exploited his vulnerability.
Gala was far more than a spouse; she was Dalí’s “anchor” and the person responsible
for the Salvador Dalí Museum’s records of their finances. Following her death, Dalí’s
health and mental state declined rapidly, and he lost the primary person who had
protected his professional interests for over 50 years.
Nevertheless, Gala Dalí was deeply involved in the business affairs of the early 1980s,
but her role was controversial and increasingly dictated by her own health and financial
needs.
The “Blitz” Contracts: From October 1980 to February 1981, Gala and Salvador Dalí
signed a wave of contracts with various French and international publishers. Some of
these contracts involved Gala selling the rights to reproduce paintings that were not
technically hers to sell in which Dali signed.
As her own health failed—suffering from dementia and physical exhaustion—she began
delegating business responsibilities to “unmanageable managers” like Dali’s personal
secretary Enrique Sabater. It is rumored that during this period that aides were most
active in having Dalí pre-sign thousands of blank sheets of paper to be used on
lithographs. *Albert Fields, Dali’s respected and Official Cataloger repudiated this as
folklore.
The hired associates like Captain John Peter Moore were supposedly tasked to help
manage these editions, but she eventually lost oversight of how many sheets were
being produced. June 10, 1982. Gala’s passing left Dalí entirely in the hands of the
aides and managers who had been brought in to assist her. This confusion ended up
being exploited by publishers and galleries. Did Dali sign these Lithographs being sold
or not? Was he even capable?
Many of the contracts Gala co-signed were later contested in court. Lawyers argued
these agreements were “meaningless” because they were signed under duress or did
not legally grant the right to market the works as “Dali Originals.” This legal ambiguity
allowed galleries like Center Art Galleries, Barclay Gallery, and Shelby Fine Arts to
exploit the signatures Gala had reportedly helped secure.
So, who did Salvador Dali signed these contracts with in the 1980s? Who are some of the main the players ?
Robert Descharnes (Demart): In 1986, Dalí signed a major agreement with his
long-time friend and advisor, Robert Descharnes, forming a company
called Demart. This contract granted Descharnes “full and complete exercise of
all intellectual property rights” until 2004. (*note after many years of painful
struggles with the Government of Spain, after Dali’s death, this contact was
deemed proper)
Istituto Grafico Italiano: In 1980, Dalí reportedly signed contracts for a series of
seven lithographs based on his drawings titled “The Arts” (Music, Painting,
Sculpture, etc.).
SPADEM: In early 1981, Dalí assigned the worldwide defense of his copyright
interests to SPADEM, a Paris-based society, in an attempt to clean up the mess
of “makeshift contracts” and shadowy publishers that had plagued his market.
SPADEM handled Picasso’s publishing. At the time this was deemed a positive
move to organize Dali’s copyright affairs.
Gilbert Hamon: Dalí authorized graphics dealer and printer Gilbert Hamon to
produce lithographs “after” Dalí between 1979 and 1981, though Hamon later
admitted to unauthorized use of Dalí’s signature on these works. He signed 11
contracts with Dalí around 1980. These deals conceded worldwide rights for
lithographs and engravings. One notable contract for “The Great Masturbator”
famously granted Hamon exclusive use of a special stamp bearing Dalí’s
thumbprint as a signature
Other Major Publishers and Dealers (Late 70s – Early 80s)
Leon Amiel: A New York-based publisher associated with prints like “Cheval
Allegre” and certain editions of “The Great Masturbator.” Works published
by Amiel frequently appear in legal and authenticity discussions regarding late-
period Dalí prints. Amiel was a central figure in the art world who produced
authorized lithographs and “interpretive lithographs” (reproductions based on
existing works) for galleries across the industry
William Mett And Marvin Wiseman of Center Art Galleries-Hawaii: A notorious gallery in which thousands of unauthorized prints sold as investment quality
Magui Publishers (Pierre Marcand): A publisher associated with many of the
editions sold through Center Art Galleries.
Transworld Art: Published the “Angel of Port Lligat” (circa 1980–81), a color
offset lithograph printed in Spain.
Lyle Stuart: Known for publishing the “Tarot Prints” suite around 1978. Which
were part of an agreement for tarot cards for the James Bond “Live and Let Die”
Movie that Dali did not complete. Courts allowed signed blank sheets as
restitution. It is reported that Dalí signed 17,500 blank sheets for this project
between 1976 and 1977. So begins the story of Dali signing blank sheets.
Jean-Claude Verite: A former French model and aide who negotiated several
contracts for Dalí during the 1980 business “blitz” at Dalí’s home in Port Lligat.
While the 1980s were fraught with controversy, Dalí had historical and institutional
collaborations with reliable established publishers and dealers before that such as
Pierre Argillet & Giuseppe Albaretto, Editions Graphiques & Editions Segur.
Jean-Paul Loup A notable publisher and distributor of Salvador Dalí’s art. In the 1980’s One of the most famous works associated with this partnership is the textured lithograph of “Lincoln in Dalivision”
Other Key Figures Who Managed Dali’s Affairs
While Gala was the primary stabilizing force, Dalí’s later years involved other managers
whose actions (and eventual deaths) were also significant:
Captain John Peter Moore : Dalí’s personal secretary and manager from 1962 to 1974
While he did not die during Dalí’s period of decline (he died in 2005), his departure and manager in the mid-70s marked the start of the chaotic and makeshift contract” era.
Moore was later convicted for tampering with Dalí’s work and producing
thousands of forgeries himself.
Robert Descharnes: A French art critic and manager who took over much of the
estate’s control through a company called Demart in 1986. Dali signed a contract
with Descharnes in 1986 allowing him full control if his intellectual property rights.
He survived Dalí and remained a central, though controversial, figure in the battle
over Dalí’s copyright until his own death in 2014.
Enrique Sabater: Dali’s personal secretary who managed Dalí’s business in the late
70s and early 80s. He was often accused of isolating the aging artist and
aggressively selling off reproduction rights for massive personal profit.
The practice of signing sheets which stopped in 1980 left an open-door unscrupulous
people to abuse his contracts. They used it as a sales scheme and print abuse. Dali
was reluctant to involve himself in any legal action partly because of illness, distrust of
courts and his pride.
He did not simply let “the authorities” decide; instead, he made several high-stakes —and often conflicting—private legal moves to protect his estate before finally naming Robert Descharnes in control of his intellectual property rights and the Spanish State as his heir. Which had its own long battle after Dali’s passing in 1989.