Week 27: Jul. 7, 2024

Dawn [Yellow], Niki de Saint Phalle, French-American, 1995, Painted Polyester

Rebellion and Joy…

This special exhibit of the work of Niki de Saint Phalle was new to me, although some of the works were familiar. I had not heard of the artist, only seen elements of her work. Seeing it all together in one place along with video of interviews with the artist was interesting. However, I found it a bit overwhelming. She had a lot to say - and she said it in big bold ways.

I think my favorite aspect was the amount of joy that exuded all her work. She was usually using her work to make sociopolitical points - but putting that aside - it was simply filled with joy at every turn. The colors, shapes, sense of movement. Joyous.

My favorite was Dawn [Yellow]. It turns out there’s also a Dawn [Blue] but yellow is apparently more well known and more beloved.

I photographed it from almost every angle but again I found myself enjoying the use of the shadows to amplify the sense of movement. You can see her dancing and moving through the multiple shadows of her arms below.