Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Queen Califia's Magic Circle




Escondido in California is lucky to have the only sculpture garden in the United States designed by French artist Niki de Saint Phalle. The artist lived for many years in the States, and also in Spain where she was introduced to the work of Antonio Gaudi which inspired her to create her sculpture gardens. Her largest work is the Giardino dei Tarocchi in Tuscany, Italy, which took 20 years to complete, opening in 1998.
Queen Califia's Magical Circle opened in 2003, a year after the artist's death. It comprises a wall of snakes surrounding nine freestanding sculptures. The colorful figures with reflective mosaic surfaces demonstrate how her earlier very detailed collage works eventually developed into captivating three-dimensional creatures.

1 comment:

Restless Barb said...

Love your photos -- good representation of the experience. And thanks for the link to the Tuscany site.