The artwork titled “Fried Egg on the Plate without the Plate” was created by Salvador Dali in 1932. This piece is an oil on canvas and measures 55 x 46 cm. As a work associated with the Surrealism movement, it falls under the landscape genre. Currently, this painting is housed in a private collection.
The artwork presents a vast, desolate landscape bathed in a gradient of warm, yellow to orange hues that juxtapose with the cooler brown tones of the bottom half. Dominating the composition is an elongated and surrealist form that seems to dangle from a thread in the upper half, and extends down with a strange, organic element showing a bright red and yellow center, suggesting the yolk of an egg. This peculiar feature disrupts the otherwise empty and tranquil horizon of the landscape. The absence of other elements gives the artwork an eerie and contemplative atmosphere, characteristic of Dali’s surreal explorations of dreamscapes and symbolic compositions. The title of the piece further cements the artist’s intention to challenge viewers’ perceptions and encourage them to question the reality depicted within this Surrealist landscape.
