Salvador Dalí’s legacy in the history of public relations: A psychoanalytic and surrealist connection with Edward Bernays | Intellect Skip to content
1981
  1. Home
  2. A-Z Publications
  3. International Journal of Media & Cultural Politics
  4. Volume 19, Issue 1
  5. Article
Volume 19, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 1740-8296
  • E-ISSN: 2040-0918

Abstract

This article highlights the importance of Salvador Dalí as a pioneer in the history of public relations (PR). The Catalan painter displayed intense PR and publicity activity in a number of venues, such as media relations, events and performances, creation of content in fashion magazines, movies, TV and collaborations with a variety of industries, which helped him to build a global reputation and reach the status of star in the popular culture arena. The piece also explores the parallelisms between Dalí and Edward Bernays. They both captured the spirit of their times and used communication similarly and during the same period. The use of psychoanalysis for their work was an aspect in common that helped to establish parallelisms between both and even conclude there is a surrealistic element in PR practice that is often overlooked.

© 2023 Intellect Ltd
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/macp_00073_1
2023-11-23
2024-04-29
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Achbar, M. and Abbott, J. (2003), The Corporation, Canada: Big Picture Media Corporation.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Banning, S. and Schoen, M. (2007), ‘Maximizing public relations with the organization–public relationship scale: Measuring a public perception’s of an art museum’, Public Relations Review, 33:4, pp. 437–39, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2007.08.001.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Barnes, R. (2001), The Twenty-Century Art Book, London: Phaidon Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Bernays, E. (1923), Crystallizing Public Opinion, New York: Boni and Liveright.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Bernays, E. ([1928] 2005), Propaganda, Brooklyn, NY: Ig Publishing.
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Blackburn, R. and Kovalainen, A. (2009), ‘Researching small firms and entrepreneurship: Past, present and future’, International Journal of Management Review, 11:2, pp. 127–48, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2008.00254.x.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. Boorstin, D. J. (1961), The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America, New York: Random House.
     [Google Scholar]
  8. Borel, B. (2013), ‘Was Salvador Dalí plagued by phantom bed bugs?’, Popular Science, 29 October, https://www.popsci.com/blog-network/our-modern-plagues/was-salvador-dali-plagued-phantom-bed-bugs/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Brown, R. (2004), ‘The propagation of awe: Public relations, art and belief in Reformation Europe’, Public Relations Review, 30:4, pp. 381–89, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2004.08.015.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Brown, C. H. (2021), The Dalí Legacy: How an Eccentric Genius Changed the Art World and Created a Lasting Legacy, New York: Apollo Publishers.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Campbell, R., Martin, C., Fabos, B. and Harmsen, S. (2020), Media Essentials: A Brief Introduction, Boston, MA: Bedford and St. Martin’s.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Connelly, C. (2021), ‘The self publicist surrealist who survived a brush with death from his own art’, The New European, 24 January, https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news-salvador-dali-the-exhibitionist-surrealist-6905722/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Curtis, A. (2002), ‘The century of the self: Part 1 – Happiness machines’, BBC, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnPmg0R1M04/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  14. Cutlip, S. (1994), The Unseen Power: Public Relations. A History, Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Cutlip, S. (1995), Public Relations History: From the 17th to the 20th Century. The Antecedents, London: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  16. Dalí, S. ([1942] 1993), The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí, Mineola, NY: Dover Publications.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Dosde (2022), ‘Salvador Dalí’, Dosde, https://www.dosde.com/discover/en/salvador-dali/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  18. Ewen, S. (1996), PR! A Social History of Spin, New York: Basic Books.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Fillis, I. (2000), ‘Being creative at the marketing/entrepreneurship interface: Lessons from the art industry’, Journal of Research of Marketing & Entrepreneurship, 2:2, pp. 125–37, https://doi.org/10.1108/14715200080001543.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Fillis, I. (2002), ‘Small firm marketing theory and practice: Insights from the outside’, Journal of Research in Marketing & Entrepreneurship, 4:2, pp. 134–57, https://doi.org/10.1108/14715200280001469.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Fillis, I. (2015a), ‘The production and consumption activities related to celebrity artist’, Journal of Marketing Management, 31:5&6, pp. 646–64, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2014.988281.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Fillis, I. (2015b), ‘Biographical research as a methodology for understanding entrepreneurial marketing’, International Journal of Entreprenurial Behavior & Research, 21:3, pp. 429–47, https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-11-2013-0207.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. ForeverBarcelona (2022), ‘Salvador Dalí museums in the world’, ForeverBarcelona, https://www.foreverbarcelona.com/salvador-dali-museums-in-the-world/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  24. Freberg, K. (2020), Discovering Public Relations: An Introduction to Creative and Strategic Practices, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. Fumanal, C. (2013), ‘Dalí’s brand: Lots-faces – Who are you, Salvador?’, Artisticusj, https://artisticusj.wordpress.com/category/surrealism-2/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  26. Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí (2015), ‘Temporary exhibition Media Dalí in Shanghai’, Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí, 4 November, https://www.salvador-dali.org/en/services/press/press-releases/450e7599-6e82-4fc8-b1ba-4900e05f2b83/doc/76/press-release. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  27. Gamson, J. (1994), Claims to Fame: Celebrity in Contemporary America, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  28. García, A. (2013), ‘Dalí the artist vs. Dalí the performer’, El País, 28 April, https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2013/04/28/inenglish/1367155763_945772.htm. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  29. García, C. (2015), ‘Searching for Benedict of Spinoza in the history of public relations: His influence on Walter Lippmann and Edward Bernays’, Public Relations Review, 41:3, pp. 319–25, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2015.01.003.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. García, C. (2019), ‘Gurús de las emociones y la propaganda: Walter Lippmann y Edward Bernays’, in A. Niño and J. I. Rospir (eds), Democracia y control de la opinión pública en el periodo de entreguerras, 1913–1939, Madrid: Polifemo, pp. 335–61.
     [Google Scholar]
  31. García, C. (2020), ‘Cardinal Mazarin’s breviary of politics: Exploring parallelisms between the Baroque and public relations in a post-truth society’, Public Relations Inquiry, 9:3, pp. 295–310, https://doi.org/10.1177/2046147X209208.
     [Google Scholar]
  32. Gibson, I. (1998), The Shameful Life of Salvador Dalí, London: Faber and Faber Ltd.
     [Google Scholar]
  33. Giles, D. and Rockwell, D. (2009), ‘Being a celebrity: A phenomenology of fame’, Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 40:2, pp. 178–210, https://doi.org/10.1163/004726609X12482630041889.
     [Google Scholar]
  34. Glaw, X., Inder, K., Kable, A. and Hazelton, M. (2017), ‘Visual methodologies in qualitative research: Autophotography and photo elicitation applied to mental health research’, International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16:1, https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406917748215.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. Graham, G. (1997), Philosophy of the Arts: An Introduction to Aesthetics, London: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  36. Hallahan, K. (2010), Being Public: Publicity as Public Relations, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
     [Google Scholar]
  37. Hayes, D. and Roodhouse, S. (2010), ‘From missionary to market maker’, in F. Kerrigan (ed.), Marketing the Arts: A Fresh Approach, London: Routledge, pp. 40–53.
     [Google Scholar]
  38. Hill, L., O’Sullivan, C., O’Sullivan, T. and Whitehead, B. (2018), Creative Arts Marketing, London: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  39. Johnson, S. and Prijatel, P. (1999), The Magazine from Cover to Cover: Inside a Dynamic Industry, Lincolnwood, IL: NTC Publishing.
     [Google Scholar]
  40. Kelleher, T. (2021), Public Relations, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  41. Legáthová, L. (2020), ‘Branding the artist: The case of Jeff Koons’, bachelor’s thesis, Prague: Charles University, https://dspace.cuni.cz/bitstream/handle/20.500.11956/118747/130283476.pdf?sequence=1. Accessed 7 July 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Lippmann, W. ([1922] 1997), Public Opinion, New York: Free Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  43. Lippmann, W. (2007), The Phantom Public, New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.
     [Google Scholar]
  44. Marshall, P. D. (1997), Celebrity and Power, Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  45. Martínez-Herrera, M. J., Alcántara, A. and García-Fernández, L. (2003), ‘Dalí (1904–1989): Psychoanalysis and pictorial surrealism’, Images in Psychiatry, 160:5, pp. 855–56, https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.160.5.855.
     [Google Scholar]
  46. McLeod, K. (2007), ‘Salvador Dalí on “What’s my line”’, YouTube, 15 May, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXT2E9Ccc8A. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  47. Meisler, S. (2005), ‘The surreal world of Salvador Dalí’, Smithsonian Magazine, April, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-surreal-world-of-salvador-dali-78993324/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  48. Merriam Webster (2022), Surrealism, Springfield, MA: Merriam Webster, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/surrealism. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  49. Mikacova, L. and Gavlakova, P. (2014), ‘The role of public relations in branding’, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 110, pp. 832–40, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.12.928.
     [Google Scholar]
  50. Milton, J., Polmear, C. and Fabricius, J. (2011), ‘Basics of psychoanalytic theory’, in J. Milton, C. Polmear and J. Fabricius (eds), A Short Introduction to Psychoanalysis, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, pp. 19–46, https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781446288801.n2.
     [Google Scholar]
  51. Moret, X. (1998), ‘Gibson cree que Dalí inicia su decadencia cuando vuelve a la España de Franco’, El País, 13 May, https://elpais.com/diario/1998/05/13/cultura/895010404_850215.html. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  52. Mulholland, T. (2008), ‘Fulco di Verdura: The elegant beguiler of stars’, New York Times, 2 May, https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/02/style/02ihtrcajverd.1.12521814.html?scp=1&sq=the%20beguiler%20of%20stars&st=cse. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  53. Muñoz, R. (2017), ‘Schiaparelli y Dalí, la moda surrealista’, RTVE, 7 November, https://www.rtve.es/noticias/20171107/schiaparelli-dali-moda-surrealista/1632946.shtml. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  54. Myers, C. (2020), Public Relations History: Theory, Practice and Profession, London: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  55. Pine, J. (2007), ‘Anti-surrealist cross-word puzzles: Breton, Dalí and print in wartime America’, Journal of Surrealism and the Americas, 1:1, pp. 1–29, https://keep.lib.asu.edu/items/140948. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  56. Rabaté, J.-M. (2002), ‘Loving Freud madly: Surrealism between hysterical and paranoid modernism’, Journal of Modern Literature, 25:3&4, pp. 58–74, https://picasso.shsu.edu/documents/3831854.pdf. Accessed 23 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  57. Raby, P. (1988), Oscar Wilde, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  58. Rees, S. (2020), Public Relations, Branding and Authenticity, London: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  59. Rose, G. (1983), ‘Sigmund Freud and Salvador Dalí: Cultural and historical processes’, American Imago, 40:4, pp. 349–53.
     [Google Scholar]
  60. Rubi, E. (2006), ‘The great masturbator in retrospect: Salvador Dalí at the Philadelphia museum of art’, NY Arts, 24 June, https://nyartsmagazine.net/the-great-masturbator-in-retrospect-salvador-dala%C2%AFaa%C2%BD-at-the-philadelphia-museum-of-art-edward-rubi/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  61. Salingaros, N. (2013), ‘A vision for architecture as more than the sum of its parts’, Permaculture News, 22 November, https://www.permaculturenews.org/2013/11/22/vision-architecture-sum-parts/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  62. Sawin, M. (1995), Surrealism in Exile and the Beginning of the New York School, Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  63. Saymova, V. (2017), ‘Ten lessons of successful self-promotion from Salvador Dalí’, Conocimientos, 4 August, https://arthive.com/es/publications/2800~Ten_lessons_of_successful_selfpromotion_from_Salvador_Dali. Accessed 7 October 2022.
     [Google Scholar]
  64. Schroeder, J. E. (2000), ‘Édouard Manet, Calvin Klein and the strategic use of Scandal’, in S. Brown and A. Patterson (eds), Imagining Marketing: Art, Aesthetics, and the Avantgarde, London: Routledge, pp. 37–51.
     [Google Scholar]
  65. Seitel, F. (2019), The Practice of Public Relations, Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
     [Google Scholar]
  66. Timoteo, J. (1987), Historia y modelos de comunicación en el siglo XX: El Nuevo orden informativo, Barcelona: Ariel.
     [Google Scholar]
  67. Tye, L. (1998), The Father of Spin: Edward Bernays & the Birth of Public Relations, New York: Crown Publishers.
     [Google Scholar]
  68. Vogue (1941), ‘Dalí’s dream of jewels’, Vogue, 15 July, pp. 32–33, https://www.bejeweledmag.com/collaboration-fulco-di-verdura-salvadore-dalicreates-memorable-historic-jewels/#prettyPhoto[gallery-]/3/. Accessed 21 March 2023.
     [Google Scholar]
  69. Wallace, M. (1958), ‘Salvador Dalí interview with Mike Wallace’, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwMs9HBFp_4. Accessed 21 March 2023.
  70. Xifra, J. and Heath, R. L. (2018), ‘Publicizing atrocity and legitimizing outrage: Picasso’s Guernica’, Public Relations Review, 44:1, pp. 28–36, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2017.10.006.
     [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1386/macp_00073_1
Loading
  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): art; communication; marketing; popular culture; psychoanalysis; reputation

Most Cited Most Cited RSS feed

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error