{"product_id":"76967-niki-de-saint-phalle-die-grotte","title":"Niki de Saint Phalle. The Grotto","description":"In Niki de Saint Phalle's unique oeuvre, spectacular, large-scale environments play a prominent role. Her \"shooting pictures,\" the walk-in Nanas, the Stravinsky Fountain in Paris, and her Tarot Garden in Tuscany are virtuoso examples of this. A comparably imposing ensemble, and her last completed major project, became her artistic legacy: a grotto in the Herrenhausen Gardens in Hanover, redesigned according to her plans, which was opened to the public in April 2003. Built in 1676 as part of the Baroque garden complex, the three grotto rooms, adorned with shells, crystals, glass, and minerals, originally served as a summer retreat and a place of enchantment. For EXPO 2000, they were restored and subsequently magnificently re-designed by Niki de Saint Phalle. This was achieved with pebbles, mosaics of colored glass and mirrors, and figures made of painted fiberglass. The revised new edition of the 2003 monograph describes the history of its creation and restoration and clarifies the art-historical significance of the grotto from today's perspective. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNiki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002) is considered one of the most important European post-war artists. Her multifaceted work combined socially critical and feminist approaches with a radically new, partly iconoclastic formal language and an experimental use of materials. From the 1950s onwards, she became known for her \"shooting pictures,\" and in the 1960s, for her large-scale \"Nanas.\" With expressive, striking, and often fragile assemblages and installations, she contributed to the changed, activist concept of art in the post-war period.","brand":"Hatje Cantz Verlag","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52369193074952,"sku":"9783775758642","price":18.49,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0582\/8948\/8049\/files\/odoo_9783775758642_61326519-07b3-42a8-aed2-519f03f65321.jpg?v=1766135226","url":"https:\/\/hatjecantz.com\/products\/76967-niki-de-saint-phalle-die-grotte","provider":"Hatje Cantz Verlag","version":"1.0","type":"link"}