Edition

3/225

Dimensions

65 × 50 cm (25⅝ × 19¾ in.)

Condition

Excellent condition with fresh, vibrant colours.

Catalogue Note

Published in 1972, King of Hearts forms part of Salvador Dalí's celebrated Playing Cards Portfolio, an imaginative suite in which the artist transformed the familiar imagery of the traditional deck of cards into a surreal and highly personal visual language. Combining heraldic motifs, dreamlike symbolism and his unmistakable graphic style, Dalí elevated the everyday playing card into a work of fine art.

For centuries, the King of Hearts has occupied a unique place in European playing-card tradition. Often referred to as the "Suicide King" because the sword appears to pass behind his head, the figure has long been associated with themes of sacrifice, mortality and the fragility of power. Dalí embraces these historic associations while reinterpreting the monarch through his own surrealist imagination. Bold areas of primary colour, fluid black contours and unexpected symbolic forms transform the conventional court card into a psychologically charged portrait that oscillates between authority, fantasy and illusion.

Throughout his career Dalí delighted in appropriating familiar cultural imagery and reinventing it through the lens of Surrealism. Chess pieces, tarot cards, playing cards and religious iconography all became vehicles through which he explored the subconscious, mythology and the hidden meanings embedded within everyday objects. In the Playing Cards Portfolio, each member of the royal court becomes an individual work of art while remaining instantly recognisable within the centuries-old language of the playing card.

Printed on fine Arches paper in a limited edition of only 225 impressions, the portfolio demonstrates the exceptional quality of Dalí's mature graphic work. The brilliant colours, crisp lithographic printing and expressive draughtsmanship reveal the artist's remarkable ability to combine technical precision with imaginative freedom. Each print balances decorative elegance with the enigmatic symbolism that defines Dalí's finest work.

Today, the Playing Cards Portfolio remains one of Dalí's most admired graphic series, appealing equally to collectors of Surrealism, twentieth-century prints and decorative art. King of Hearts is among its most iconic compositions, uniting historical symbolism with Dalí's unmistakable visual imagination in a work that is both playful and profoundly intriguing.