Niki de Saint Phalle, papier-mâché, 1966
French artist Niki de Saint Phalle was rebellious and fought her way to freedom as a self-taught artist. She lived in the United States as a child, grew up under strict Catholic rules, but was sexually abused by her father. In the early 1960s, she expressed her suffering in spectacular fashion. Niki fired at paint bags and spray cans placed in front of her plaster reliefs, astonishing the art world with her colourful ‘Tirs’. In this way, she shifted the focus from male violence to women taking control of their own lives, becoming a role model for free-spirited women.
This early ‘Nana’ was shaped using iron wire and covered with papier-mâché. She became the iconic symbol of a feminist standpoint. The well-known frivolous dancing Nanas were later also converted into polyester, spreading her message of freedom and vitality even further. Niki de Saint Phalle lived with the Swiss bohemian and sculptor Jean Tinguely, with whom she incorporated her emancipated Nana sculptures into large installations.
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