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PARIS |
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DE SAINT PHALLE Niki
(b Paris, 29 Oct 1930). French sculptor, writer, stage designer and film maker. She spent the first 20 years of her life in New York. A self-taught artist, on her return to Europe she began to work in a style similar to art brut. She first came to public attention through the Shots series (1960-61; see 1980 exh. cat., pp. 14-15), ironic parodies of Art informel painting, comprising plaster reliefs incorporating pockets of paint, which burst when fired at by visitors to the exhibition, thus staining the surface. Through these works Saint Phalle became associated with NOUVEAU RÉALISME. She produced reliefs and sculptures made of objets trouvés and plastic toys; these were always playful and imaginary. Monsters and other fantastic creatures were also among her favourite themes (e.g. King Kong, 1963; Stockholm, Mod. Mus.), while other assemblages were in the form of iconoclastic altars (e.g. O.A.S. Altar, 1962; priv. col., see 1987 exh. cat., p. 67).
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