Niki de Saint Phalle

Catherine-Marie-Agnès Fal de Saint Phalle (Known as "Niki de Saint Phalle")

Monumental Sculptor, Painter, Creator of the Nanas and The Tarot Garden, Stravinsky Fountain

Born Oct 29, 1930

Neuilly-sur-Seine (near Paris), France

Passed Away May 21, 2002 La Jolla (San Diego, California), United States

Lifespan 71 years old

0 views

Notice / Correction

"I was born a woman; society told me to stay in my place, so I picked up a rifle and shot the old world to pieces."

Archival Overview

French-American feminist sculptor and member of the Nouveaux Réalistes who achieved worldwide acclaim for her revolutionary Shooting Paintings, jubilant monumental 'Nanas', and the fantastical Tarot Garden in Tuscany.

Biographical Record

Surviving childhood sexual trauma and hospitalization, Saint Phalle discovered art as psychiatric liberation. In 1961, she shocked the international art world with her Tirs (Shooting Paintings)—firing a .22 rifle at plaster canvases containing concealed bags of paint, creating violent explosive bursts.

In 1965, she unveiled her iconic 'Nanas'—monumental, brightly painted papier-mâché and polyester female figures celebrating joyous female matriarchy and body freedom. Alongside her artistic and marital partner Jean Tinguely, she created the Stravinsky Fountain outside the Centre Pompidou and spent twenty years building the Tarot Garden in Capalbio, Italy.

Memorial Guestbook & Tributes

0 messages recorded

Leave a Respectful Tribute

Select a sentiment or reaction (optional):

Rest in Peace Forever remembered and cherished Your legacy lives on in all of us With deep gratitude for your life and light

Your Name / Title *

Your Email (Private, for anti-abuse)

Tribute Message *

No tributes recorded yet. Be the first to leave a message in honor of Niki de Saint Phalle.

Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial

Ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean off San Diego
San Diego (California), United States

                         GPS: 32.7157, -117.1611                    

View on Memory Atlas

Archival Standards PastLegacies adheres to strict neutral biographical guidelines and legal standards of remembrance. Next-of-kin may request modifications or removal at any time via our expedited process.

Read Governance Policy →