"I have a very special connection to Hannover"

Niki de Saint Phalle

She is the creator of the world-famous Nanas and Hannover’s first—and so far only—honorary citizen.

She had a friendship with Hanover that spanned more than 30 years: Niki de Saint Phalle—born on October 29, 1930, in Paris; died on May 21, 2002, in San Diego. The world-renowned artist most recently expressed her affection for the city on the Leine in a single, striking sentence in the fall of 2000: “I have a very special feeling for Hannover,” said the then 70-year-old.

Niki de Saint Phalle achieved her artistic breakthrough in the 1950s through her participation in exhibitions organized by the international group "Nouveaux Réalistes." In the decades that followed, in addition to her films "Daddy" and "Camélia et le Dragon" as well as exhibitions in all the major museums of the world, numerous extraordinary art projects garnered significant attention: for example, the giant Nana "Hon - en katedral" for the Moderna Museet in Stockholm (1966), the "Paradis Fantastique" for the French EXPO pavilion in Montreal (1967), which she designed together with her longtime partner Jean Tinguely, the “Golem” monster house with slides in Jerusalem (1972), and the “Giardino dei Tarocchi” in Tuscany, which was conceived in 1974 and finally completed in 1996.

The installation of the three colorful, voluminous polyester Nanas on the banks of the Leine River in Hannover in 1974 sparked a storm of protest among some Hannover residents, but it also sparked—the first—lively and in-depth discussion about art in public spaces. Today, the Nanas, which quickly became landmarks of the Expo city, are beloved.

Niki de Saint Phalle had been working on the redesign of the Grotto for the city of Hanover since 1998. The honorary citizen of Hanover passed away one year before the completion of the impressive Grotto in the Great Garden. The detailed plans she had drawn up, along with extensive information provided by her staff, made it possible to complete the (redesigned) Grotto. The grotto in Herrenhausen is thus the last major art project that Niki de Saint Phalle completed before her death. Further information about Niki de Saint Phalle can be found on the artist’s homepage and on the Sprengel Museum’s website.