As I have mentioned, Dodgson was a mathematician lecturer. Dalí was also very interested in math; his painting The Sacrament of the Last Supper (1955) featured numerous proportions in the golden ratio. Mathematician Thomas Banchoff had the opportunity to interview Dalí on a number of occasions, and he discussed how Dali’s images were often inspired by ideas from the disciplines of science and math, as well as literature and philosophy (xviii). In particular, Dalí cared about being taken seriously by professional scientists and mathematicians. His passion and interest in mathematics was deep, and he was well versed in mathematical history; his mathematical inspirations were classical: he named Raymond Lull, a medieval mystic and polymath as his primary inspiration (xix).

Though I’m not sure if this mathematic connection played any part in Dalí’s decision to illustrate Alice in Wonderland, I would like to think that he felt an association with Carroll.

Works Cited

“Introduction.” Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – 150th Anniversary Edition. Ed. Mark Burstein. Princeton: Princeton U Press, 2015. Vi-Xxviii. Print.