The Artist
Niki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002) was a citizen of the world: born near Paris, raised in New York, traveled in Europe, and later worked in Switzerland, France, Israel, Italy, and finally California.
She was the only female member of Europe's New Realist art movement, a contemporary of American Pop Art. She collaborated with avant-garde artists Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, and also with Jean Tinguely, whom she later married.
A prolific self-taught artist, Niki first earned renown for her "shooting paintings," created by firing a 22-caliber rifle at containers of paint mounted onto canvases. Later in the 1960s, the "nanas" made their creator famous. Made of wire and fabric, these brightly painted, oversized female figures became a symbol of female empowerment.
Inspired by Gaud? Niki went on to devote 20 years to create a monumental sculpture park, the Tarot Garden in Tuscany.
The largest collection of her works in the U.S. is found in and around San Diego, California, where she spent her final years. She died in 2002 of emphysema, her lungs damaged by many years of breathing polyester fiber while creating her early works.
Today, Niki is remembered as the creator of playful, larger-than-life creations celebrating diversity, women, children, love, and joy. Her work is beloved throughout the world. |
