Who is the monster, you or me?

Filmed at her home in San Diego, at her studio in Paris, and in Tuscany, Niki de Saint Phalle talks about her life, her work, and her collaboration with Jean Tinguely. 

Peter Schamoni’s documentary Who Is the Monster, You or Me? opens with clips of the artist painting in the early ’60s: “Instead of becoming a terrorist, I became an art terrorist.”

Then, it presents some of her unparalleled creations: the voluptuous, colourful Nanas, the Devouring Mothers, giant sculptures that include Hon the cathedral woman in Stockholm, the Golem in Jerusalem, the Dragon in Knokke-Le-Zoute, the Stravinsky Fountain in Paris and, lastly, Le Cyclop in the forest near Fontainebleau.

One of the highlights of the documentary is the account of the events surrounding the design and opening of the Tarot Garden in Tuscany. The project, which began in 1978, is a representation of the 22 main cards of the Tarot. The documentary is interspersed with excerpts from the artist’s experimental films, Daddy and Un rêve plus long que la nuit.