“The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art unveiled a new exhibit Saturday in uptown Charlotte,” reports WBTV in Charlotte, North Carolina. “Five large-scale mixed-media sculptures by French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle were placed in the Green, next to the museum.” The enormous sculptures, “large enough that kids can play in them,” include La Cabeza (2000), a six-ton skull in green, yellow, and red with room for a dozen people inside. Another, shown here, is Niki’s Grande Step Totem (2001).
“The display is a prelude to a larger exhibit of the artist’s work, set to go on display Friday, March 18th,” adds the report. “The outdoor works will remain on display until October.”
The Bechtler is home to Niki’s popular Firebird (a.k.a. Le grand oiseau de feu sur l’arche), now on permanent public display in front of the museum.
For the indoor exhibition — entitled “Niki de Saint Phalle: Creation of a New Mythology” and running from 18 March through 30 September — the Bechtler will be showing about 60 additional works by Niki de Saint Phalle in its fourth-floor gallery, as reported in January by the Charlotte Observer. Watch this space for more news about this exhibition.
(Image copyright © Mark Durham and NCAF. All rights reserved. Photo: Mark Durham)