Catalan Bread (1932)
Oil on canvas
9 9/16 x 13 inches

Salvador Dali has several reasons for being obsessed with bread, which he had been painting since 1926, starting with The Basket of Bread. However, in this work, Dali has also transformed this loaf of bread into an enormous phallic object. Not only is the left end of the bread fully erect, it is also covered with what looks very much like a condom. In addition, that end of the bread is propped up with a string, allowing it to stay erect. This may have reflected Dali's fear of impotence, as the whole painting has decisively sexual undertones.