Salvador Dali IELTS Reading Answers

The Reading Module of the IELTS can be the top-scoring category with diligent practice. To achieve the best results in this section, you must understand how to approach and answer the different Question types in the Reading Module. Salvador Dali is a reading passage that appeared in the recent IELTS Test. Try to find the answers to get an idea of the difficulty level of the passages in the actual reading test. This page contains – Salvador Dali IELTS reading answers and its passage for you to practice.

The question types found in this passage are:

• Matching Sentence Endings (Q.11-13)
• Multiple-Choice questions (Q.14-21)
• Summary Completion (Q. 22-26)

If you want to Revise How to Solve Matching Sentence Ending Questions for IELTS Reading, Check the video below. 

Reading Passage

Salvador Dali

Few with even a passing knowledge of the art world is likely not to have heard of Salvador Dali, the eccentric and avant-garde exponent of the Surrealist movement. Love him or loathe him, Dali’s work has achieved enduring worldwide fame as his name and work have become virtually synonymous with Surrealism itself. The artist’s melting clock image is surely one of the most iconic paintings of the art world, whilst Dali’s antics have become the stuff of anecdotes.

Born into a middle-class family in the Catalonian town of Figueres in north-eastern Spain, Dali (or Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dali Domenech, to give him his full name) aimed high from the beginning. In the artist’s 1942 autobiography entitled ‘The Secret Life of Salvador Dali’, the artist describes how ‘At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambition has been growing steadily ever since.’ Such ambition and self-belief matured into full-blown arrogance in later years. An example of this is amply shown on an occasion when the artist felt the examiners of the Madrid Academy, he was attending were well below par.

To a degree, his undeniably impressive and precocious talent excused his conceit. He was only 14 when his first works were exhibited as part of a show in Figueres. Then three years later he was admitted to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, in Madrid. However, it wasn’t long before Salvador Dali’s highly developed sense of self-worth (or conceit, depending on how you view the artist) came to the fore and also affected the course of his life. Believing himself way superior to the Academy tutors, who nevertheless refused to grant him a degree, the rebellious artist left for Paris. There he hoped to avail himself of knowledge that he believed his tutors were not adequate to impart. He soon made the acquaintance of the French surrealists Jean Arp, Rene Magritte and Max Ernst and this would prove a turning point in Dali’s artistic life.

Already familiar with the psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud, Dali was to witness how the French surrealists were attempting to capture Freud’s ideas in paint. The whole world of the unconscious sublimated into dreams was to become the content of these artists’ work and later that of Dali’s, too. International acclaim followed shortly after. In 1933 he enjoyed solo exhibitions in Paris and New York City, becoming, as one exhibition curator put it, ‘Surrealism’s most exotic and prominent figure’. Praise continued to be heaped on Dali as French poet and critic, Andre Breton, the leader of the Surrealist movement gave the artist his blessing to continue carrying the torch for the artistic movement, writing that Dali’s name was ‘synonymous with revelation in the most resplendent sense of the word’.

Dali’s surrealist paintings were packed with Freudian imagery: staircases, keys, and dripping candles, in addition to a whole host of personally relevant symbolism such as grasshoppers and ants that captured his phobias on canvas. Despite Dali’s overt adulation for Freud, a meeting with the grandmaster of psychoanalysis proved somewhat unfortunate. On the occasion that Dali met Freud, he proceeded to sketch the latter in earnest. However, something about Dali’s fervid attitude must have alarmed the psychoanalyst as he is said to have whispered to others in the room, ‘The boy looks like a fanatic.’

Sometimes Dali not only came across as mad but also unintelligible, at least as far as his paintings were concerned. One work, ‘The Persistence of Memory’, was particularly singled out for the sheer confusion it caused amongst its viewers. Featuring melting clocks, swarming ants and a mollusc that was the deflated head of Salvador Dali in disguise, the images were so puzzling that one critic urged readers to ‘Page Dr. Freud’ to uncover the meaning of the canvas. His work was, if nothing else, provocative and powerful.

With the passing years, Dali became ever more infatuated with money, admitting to a ‘pure, vertical, mystical, gothic love of cash.’ Accordingly, he indiscriminately endorsed a host of products for French and American TV commercials. He also never failed to promote himself and displayed increasingly exhibitionist behaviour as time went on. Most notably, he once turned up for a lecture in Paris in a Rolls Royce stuffed with cauliflowers. He obviously believed the slogan of one of his advertising campaigns for Braniff Airlines, where he declares ‘If you got it, flaunt it’. As a more positive outcome of his love for money, Dali took on increasingly diverse projects, ranging from set design to designing clothes and jewellery. His critics, however, believed that early on in his career his love for money exceeded his dedication to producing great art, resulting in Dali producing ‘awful junk’ after 1939, according to one art critic.

Despite a lukewarm reception from critics, Dali’s public popularity never declined. In 1974, at 70 years old, the Dali Theatre Museum opened in his hometown, Figueres. More of a surrealist happening than a museum, one exhibit was a long black Cadillac that rained inside itself whenever a visitor dropped a coin into the slot. Even today hundreds of thousands of visitors still tour the museum each year. Whatever your opinion of him, at least Salvador Dali is unlikely to ever be forgotten.

Questions 1-3

1 Dali displayed a precocious talent from an early age: however, he was aware ______________.

2 Encountering the French Surrealist painters in Paris __________________.

3 Dales artistic legacy is secure although _______________.

A of certain limitations in his artistic skills that became evident in his later works.

B opened Dales eyes to the psychoanalytic movement, the ideas of which he then incorporated into his works.

C his artistic studies needed to be supplemented by going to Paris to meet the Surrealist artists.

D some art critics are less impressed with his work than the general public.

E inspired Dali to focus on the psychoanalytic content of his artwork.

Questions 4-6

4 Dali’s departure for Paris was i

A Inspired by a desire to learn about psychoanalysis.

B a result of being disgraced at the Madrid Academy.

C to blame for his failure to complete his Academy degree.

D a quest for self-improvement.

5 Dali came to represent the Surrealist Movement

A due to a personal endorsement by fellow artist, Andre Breton.

B because he depicted the most memorable images of Surrealism.

C as he had a better understanding of psychoanalysis than his fellow artists.

D since he was no more talented, as an artist, than his peers.

6 Dali’s work was

A accessible to those with an understanding of psychoanalysis.

B loaded with secret symbolism.

C more a channel for personal expression than a financial undertaking.

D to prove more popular as Dali grew older.

Questions 7-8

A his contribution to the field of psychoanalysis

B his diverse output of artistic works

C his inappropriate behaviour and eccentricity

D his striking and unusual paintings

E his attempt to create popular accessible works

Questions 9-10

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

9 What does the writer convey about Dali’s childhood and student days?

A His inability to pursue a goal until its conclusion

B his mental instability, evident in his great ambitions

C his supreme confidence in

D his own abilities his obviously superior intelligence

10 Why did critics turn against Dali?

A He had an obsession with fashionable clothing.

B He was devoting more time to TV commercials than painting.

C His work no longer did justice to his talent.

D His obsession with Surrealism overshadowed his work.

11 What does the writer convey about his own attitude towards Dali’s life and work?

A He believes that despite promising beginnings, Dali wasted his talents.

B In his opinion, few artists have made such an impact as Dali during his lifetime.

C He thinks that people focused more on Dali’s exhibitionist behaviour than his talent.

D He believes that despite his failings, Dali has left an enduring legacy.

Questions 12-16

Complete the summary below.

Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer

Dali has managed to achieve 12____________, becoming the figurehead of the Surrwalist movement. His sheer 13________________, which for some might have been interpreted as arrogance, led him to believe he was capable of achieving anything. Moving to France, where he encountered Surrealist artists, was a 14_________________ in his life. Dali’s work was chiefly inspired by Freud’s 15__________________ theories. However, as Dali became increasingly infatuated with more) the standard of his art declined. Despite the fact that his work is of varying quality, Dali will never 16_______________.

Answers to Salvador Dali Reading Answers with Location and Explanation

Read further for the explanation part of the IELTS reading answer.

1 Answer: C

Question Type: Matching Sentence Endings

Answer location: “To a degree, his undeniably impressive and precocious ‬talent ‬excused ‬his conceit.. & Believing ‬himself ‬way ‬superior to ‬the ‭ ‬Academy ‬tutors, ‭ ‬who ‬nevertheless refused to grant him a degree, the rebellious artist ‬left ‬for ‭ ‬Paris”

Answer explanation: Dali realized ‬that ‬he ‬wanted ‬to ‬be ‬supplemented ‬by ‬visiting ‭ ‬Paris in order ‬to ‬meet ‬the ‭ ‬Surrealist artists. Hence, the answer to this question is C.‬

2 Answer: E

Question type: Matching Sentence Endings

Answer location: “Already familiar with the psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud, Dali was to witness how the French surrealists were attempting to capture Freud’s ideas in paint. The whole world of the unconscious sublimated into dreams was to become the content of these artists’ work and later that of Dali’s, too.”

Answer explanation: We know that he has been using psychoanalytic theories and they can’t surprise him obviously. Moreover, Dali is said to use the psychoanalytic content of his work. So, the answer is ‭E.

3 Answer: D

Question type: Matching Sentence Endings

Answer location: “Despite a lukewarm reception from critics, Dali’s public popularity never declined…”

Answer Explanation: Particularly, Dali’s public popularity never declined despite a lukewarm reception from critics. Hence, we can conclude that the answer is D.

4 Answer: D

Question type: MCQ

Answer location: “However, it wasn’t long before Dali’s highly developed sense of self-worth (or conceit, depending on how you view the artist) came to the fore and also affected the course of his life. Believing himself way superior to the Academy tutors, who nevertheless refused to grant him a degree. “

Answer Explanation: Dali is said to leave for Paris since he believes that he is way superior to the Academy tutor. Anyways, it doesn’t mean that it results from being disgraced at the academy, but his highly developed sense of self-worth afiected the course of his life. Hence, the answer is D.

5 Answer: B

Question type: MCQ

Answer location: “Breton, the leader of the Surrealist movement gave the artist his blessing to continue carrying the torch for the artistic movement,  writing that Dali’s name was ‘synonymous with revelation in the most resplendent sense of the word.’

Answer Explanation: Actually, his exhibition became Surrealism’s most exotic and prominent figure. In other words, Dali came to represent the Surrealist movement because he depicted the most memorable images of Surrealism. Hence, B is the answer.

6 Answer: B

Question type: MCQ

Answer location: “One work, ‘The Persistence of Memory’, was particularly singled out for the sheer confusion it caused amongst its viewers. Featuring melting clocks, swarming ants and a mollusc that was the defiated head of Dali in disguise, the images were so puzzling that one critic urged readers to ‘page Dr. Freud’ to uncover the meaning of the canvas.”

Answer Explanation: Accordingly, Dali’s work was singled out for the sheer confusion it caused among its viewers. To be specific, his melting clocks, swarming ants and a mollusc were so puzzling that they needed to be uncovered by paging Dr. Freud. From that point, we can figure out that – B must be the answer.

Tips for Answering the Question Types in the Above Reading Passage

Let us check out some quick tips to answer the types of questions in the  ‘Salvador Dali’ Reading Answers passage.

Matching Sentence Endings: 

Matching Sentence Endings is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to match a list of sentence endings given sentences to complete them.

To answer these questions, you can use the following strategies:

• Read the given information first: This will give you an idea of the types of information that you are looking for in the passage.
• Read the passage quickly: This will give you a general understanding of the content of the passage.
• Match the information to the sentences: As you read the passage, look for the information that matches each feature.
• Check your answers: Once you have matched all of the endings, double-check your answers to make sure that they are correct and most importantly if they are grammatically correct.

Multiple Choice Questions:

You will be given a reading passage followed by several questions based on the information in the paragraph in multiple choice questions. Your task is to understand the question and compare it to the paragraph in order to select the best solution from the available possibilities.

• Before reading the passage, read the question and select the keywords. Check the keyword possibilities if the question statement is short on information.
• Then, using the keywords, read the passage to find the relevant information.
• To select the correct option, carefully read the relevant words and match them with each option.
• You will find several options with keywords that do not correspond to the information.
• Try opting for the elimination method mostly.
• Find the best option by matching the meaning rather than just the keywords.

Summary Completion:

Summary Completion is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to fill in a gap in a sentence/summary with a word or phrase from the passage.

To answer sentence completion questions, you can use the following strategies:

• Read the sentence carefully: This will give you an idea of the type of word or phrase that is missing.
• Scan the passage for the keywords: The keywords in the sentence can help you to identify the correct word or phrase.
• Read the sentence with the missing word or phrase: This will help you to see how the word or phrase fits into the sentence.
• Check your answer: Once you have filled in the gap, make sure that your answer makes sense in the context of the sentence.

Great work on attempting to solve the Salvador Dali reading passage! To crack IELTS Reading in the first go, Try solving more of the recent  IELTS reading passages.

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