During a trip to Spain, Niki de Saint Phalle discovered the work of Antoni Gaudí and was deeply impressed by it, especially by Park Güell in Barcelona. This experience inspired her to create her own sculpture garden and encouraged her to use a wide variety of materials and found objects as essential elements of her artistic practice.
Niki de Saint Phalle at Parc Guëll, Barcelona, 1955. Photo: © unknown.
Niki de Saint Phalle visited Le Palais Idéal du Facteur Cheval, created by a postman who built the palace of his imagination in Hauterives, France. In 1961, she introduced Jean Tinguely to this remarkable place.
Palais Idéal du Facteur Cheval, December 31, 1961 (from left to right: Larry Rivers, Clarice Rivers, John Ashbery, Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Larcade)
Photo: © unknown
Niki de Saint Phalle and Jean Tinguely take a trip to California; they visit Watts Towers by Simon Rodia in South Los Angeles.
Saint Phalle collaborated on Hon for the Moderna Museet in Stockholm. The work attracted worldwide attention and strengthened her desire to create her own sculpture garden. During their stay in Stockholm, Saint Phalle and Tinguely met and worked with the young Swiss artist Rico Weber, who would remain their assistant and colleague for many years and play an important role in the creation of the Tarot Garden.
Niki de Saint Phalle began collaborating with polyester specialist Haligon, who created large-format sculptures and multiples for her.
After being hospitalized for a lung abscess caused by years of working with polyester, Saint Phalle went to Saint‑Moritz, in the Swiss mountains, to recover. There, she reconnected with Marella Caracciolo Agnelli, a friend she had met in New York in the 1950s.
Saint Phalle shared with her the dream of building a sculpture garden inspired by the symbols of the tarot. Marella’s brothers, Carlo and Nicola Caracciolo, would later offer her a piece of their land in Garavicchio, in Tuscany, Italy, as the site where she could bring this dream to life.
Jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint Phalle, futur land of the Tarot Garden, 1978. © Photo Unknown
Saint Phalle returned to the Swiss mountains for an extended period in order to plan her sculpture park.
In 1977, Ricardo Menon became her assistant. He would continue working with her for the next ten years.
Saint Phalle began developing her « Giardino dei Tarocchi » on the land of Carlo and Nicola Caracciolo in Garavicchio, Tuscany, Italy. She created the first models, based on the major arcana of the tarot.
Maquette of the Tarot Garden, circa 1978. Donation Sprengel Museum.
Photo: unknown
Saint Phalle spent most of her time in Tuscany. The land was cleared and the foundations were dug.
Ugo Celletti, then a postman, was the first to work at the Jardin des Tarots. He arrived in 1979. Saint Phalle wrote that he « began by laying out stone paths, then moved on to placing metal mesh on the steel structures to receive the cement. Later, Ugo asked me to try my hand at applying mirrors to the sculptures. He became a poet of mirror‑setting. »
Saint Phalle began working on the first architectural sculptures for her Tarot Garden.
Between 1980 and 1982, Jean Tinguely and his Swiss team, Rico Weber and Seppi Imhof, began welding the metal structures for the first group of sculptures, which included The High Priestess, The Magician, The Empress, The Sun, and The Tree of Life.
The High Priestess and The Magician, iron stage. Circa 1980-1981.
Photo: Rico Weber © MAH Fribourg
Niki de Saint Phalle rented a small house near the Tarot Garden; she hired workers from the surrounding farms who helped her carry out the development of her project.
The Dutch artist Dok van Winsen met Saint Phalle in Amsterdam and later collaborated with Jean Tinguely (and Saint Phalle) on the sculpture Cyclop. At the end of 1981, he arrived in Garavicchio for the first time.
Welding the metal structure of The Empress.
Photo: Rico Weber © MAHF Fribourg
Dok van Winsen joined the team and took over Jean Tinguely’s role in the metal construction of the sculptures.
Saint Phalle wrote that « the enlargement of my models was carried out to perfection, in a medieval spirit, by Jean Tinguely and Dok van Winsen ». She added: « all the frameworks of the monumental sculptures were made from welded steel bars, shaped by the strength of the workers’ arms ».
Tonino Urtis joined the team to help van Winsen weld the metal armatures of the sculptures. By the end of the year, they were able to begin applying the concrete. A company from Ventimiglia in Italy, De Villa, specialized in highway construction, was called in for the concrete work.
De Villa and its team sprayed concrete onto the first sculptures.
The Sun being sprayed by concrete.
Photo: Giulio Pietromarchi
Saint Phalle moved into The Empress, conceived in the form of a sphinx, which served as her studio and home for the next seven years, a period during which she worked tirelessly to complete the Garden.
Dok van Winsen, assisted by Tonino Urtis, welded the second group of architectural sculptures: The Emperor, The Tower, Justice, the chapel, and The Hierophant (which Niki de Saint Phalle described as « Jean’s favorite sculpture in the entire Garden »)
jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint Phalle inside The Empress.
Photo : Laurent Condominas
Pierre Marie Lejeune, whom Saint Phalle had met in 1980 in Paris in the workshop where her sculptures were being produced, had been hired by her to help paint the sculptures for the Fontaine Stravinsky. In 1983, he visited the Tarot Garden for the first time.
Gérard Haligon and Pierre Marie Lejeune painted The Sun during the summer of 1983; this would be Lejeune’s first task at the Garden.
Between 1983 and 1995, Lejeune would travel to the Tarot Garden four or five times a year.
Saint Phalle then decided to use ceramics in addition to mirrors and glass to cover her sculptures.
Lejeune worked with her for years to find new glass and mirror materials, traveling to Poland, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, and the United States, and having these materials specially produced according to her specifications.
He developed a process for covering the sculptures with mosaic and hired his then‑wife, Isabelle Dunoyer de Segonzac, to run a workshop dedicated to this purpose.
The painted Sun.
Photo: Rico Weber ©MAH Fribourg
For ceramics, her friend and assistant Ricardo Menon introduced her to Venera Finocchiaro, a ceramics professor from Rome.
Saint Phalle wrote: « Venera was to become the ceramist of the Garden; she devoted herself entirely to her work ». She added: « She lived in the Garden and fulfilled my wish to create unique objects that had never existed before in the art of ceramics. Her magnificent works speak for themselves. »
Venera Finochiaro working on the ceramics of The Empress.
Photo: Giulio Pietromarchi
Marco Iacotonio began working at the Garden, finishing the concrete by hand.
In 1984, the concrete work was completed for the second group of architectural sculptures (The Emperor, The Tower, The Hierophant and The Justice).
Kilns were purchased and installed within the Tarot Garden (up to three) for the production of ceramics, which from then on were all made, molded and fired on site.
Saint Phalle created models for Temperance (card no. XIV), Death (card no. XIII), and The Lovers (card no. VI).
The mirrors on the exterior of The Tower were begun in 1984–1985. Started in 1984 and completed in 1985, the large serpent of The High Priestess was made in molded ceramic.
The face of The Magician was completed at the same time.
Photo: Rico Weber. ©MAH Fribourg
Jean Tinguely built a machine for The Tower of Babel. Named Eos, it was a welded iron sculpture equipped with an electric motor. It symbolized the anger of God.
Among the other machines created by Tinguely for the Tarot Garden were The Wheel of Fortune, installed in 1988 in the basin in front of The High Priestess; and Injustice (1983), a welded iron sculpture composed of found objects, lamps and electric motors, which would be installed inside Justice (card VIII), locked in place by a huge padlock.
Life‑size versions of Temperance (in February) and The Lovers (in March) were created from the models made in 1984. They were produced in polyester resin by Robert Haligon and his sons, Gérard and Olivier.
In April, a model was created for The Devil.
In 1985 and 1986, the glass and mirror mosaics were begun for The Empress (the blue mirror of the hair), The High Priestess, The Magician (its face), Justice, the interior mirrors of the chapel, and The Hierophant.
Jean Tinguely and his assistant Seppi Imhof welding The Wheel of Fortune.
Photo: Laurent Condominas
Ricardo Menon introduced Marcelo Zitelli to Niki de Saint Phalle. He became an important assistant and collaborator of the artist.
The mirrors on the exterior of The Tower were completed in 1986–1987.
Claudio Celletti began working at the Tarot Garden.
Between 1987 and 1993, Saint Phalle once again began spending more time in Paris. There she created many works for the Tarot Garden, including Death, The Hermit, The Fool, The Devil, The Chariot, The Hanged Man, The Oracle, The Sage, The World, The Star, The Conversation, and The Serpent Pouf.
In March, Saint Phalle created an enlarged version (300 cm) of The Moon (card no. XVIII) based on the 1983 model. This version was judged too small and replaced by an even larger one (500 cm) made in 1992–1993.
The Hierophant and Justice were completed in 1987–1988.
Saint Phalle asked Pierre Marie Lejeune to create the benches around the fountain at the foot of The Empress (the Sphinx). Lejeune proposed a small amphitheater with seats set into the rocks.
Installation of the Death at The Tarot Garden
Photo: Laurent Condominas
In January 1988, Saint Phalle created the life‑size version of Death (card no. XIII), based on the model from September 1984, with the help of her assistant Marcelo Zitelli. The Hermit (card no. IX) was created in clay in June 1988. Both were produced in polyester by Haligon.
All aspects of The Magician (card no. I) and The High Priestess (card no. II) were completed in 1988–1989. Work then focused on The Empress (card no. III) and, immediately afterward, on The Emperor (card no. IV).
Finding it too oppressive to live in « the belly of her mother »—that is, The Empress (the Sphinx)—Saint Phalle had a New York loft‑style studio built underground at the Tarot Garden.
By 1988, she was already spending part of her time there, and eventually settled there permanently.
Work in front the new studio.
Photo:Laurent Condominas
Alessia Celletti began working at the Tarot Garden.
Ricardo Menon died of AIDS. His death was devastating for Saint Phalle. She created a sculpture representing a cat in memory of Ricardo, so that he would remain forever present in the Tarot Garden. Saint Phalle lost many friends to AIDS during these years.
In January 1989, The World (card no. XXI) was created, then produced in polyester by Robert Haligon and his sons; a mosaic version would later be installed in the Tarot Garden.
Saint Phalle created an enlarged version of The Devil (card no. XV) in February 1989, based on a model from April 1985, and then created The Fool (card no. 0) and The Hanged Man (card no. XII) in clay in Paris with her assistant Marcelo Zitelli, in August and November 1989 respectively.
At Saint Phalle’s suggestion, Pierre Marie Lejeune created a cement path on which he inscribed hieroglyphs, as well as Gypsy signs and symbols.
The Strength was completed in 1989.
Niki de Saint Phalle drawing the paths.
Photo:Laurent Condominas
In September 1990, an enlarged version of The Plate Fountain was created from a model dating from June 1974. The Hanged Man (card no. XII) was installed in The Tree of Life of the Tarot Garden in November; The Devil (card no. XV) was installed the same month.
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, Saint Phalle was spending less and less time each year at the Garden.
Nevertheless, work at the Tarot Garden continued, with the maintenance of the Garden and its sculptures becoming increasingly important.
In 1992–1993, the restoration of certain sculptures began, using new gluing techniques and acetic silicones for the mirrors and glass.
At the same time, Niki de Saint Phalle worked to legalize the status of her Garden.
In August 1991, Jean Tinguely died in Bern, Switzerland. Saint Phalle’s health deteriorated as she worked simultaneously on the creation of a Tinguely Museum in Basel, where she became friends with the architect Mario Botta.
The Fool (card no. 0) was installed in the Tarot Garden in November. The Fool, as a wanderer, has changed location several times and will continue to do so…
In March 1993, The Plate Fountain (also known as Nana Fountain) was installed in the Tarot Garden, along with a new, larger version (500 cm) of The Moon (card no. XVIII).
In 1994, for health reasons, Saint Phalle moved to La Jolla, California, where she would live for the next eight years.
There she set up a studio to work with mirror, glass, and stone, materials she increasingly used in her sculptures instead of paint.
Pierre Marie Lejeune traveled several times to California to source materials and to set up a mosaic workshop there.
Gianpiero Ottavi began working at the Tarot Garden as a gardener.
In 1995–1996, almost all the mosaics on the sculptures were completed.
The “anti‑boutique” and the Garden’s furniture, created by Pierre Marie Lejeune, were installed.
The Tarot Garden Foundation was established in Rome on 4 August 1997.
In 1997, Stefano Mancini began working as administrator of the Tarot Garden, succeeding Gigi Pegoraro, who had handled administrative matters.
The architect Mario Botta built an entrance gate for the Tarot Garden.
« I asked my friend Mario Botta to create an entrance to the Garden that would contrast with the interior », wrote Saint Phalle.
« Mario built a masculine wall, similar to a fortress, using local stone, clearly marking the separation between the outside world and the inner world. For me, this wall symbolizes protection, like the dragon that guards the treasure in fairy tales. »
The Tarot Garden (which had already been attracting visitors for some time) was officially opened to the public on 15 May 1998.
Construction of the entrance to the Tarot Garden, “the wall” by Mario Botta. Photo: Giulio Pietromarchi
Around 2000 Tonino Urtis undertook two trips to the United States to teach ceramic techniques to Saint Phalle’s new team in Southern California, necessary for her latest project Queen Califia Magical Circle in Escondido, California.
Even after moving to the United States, Saint Phalle did not abandon the Tarot Garden. She planned a labyrinth for the Garden, for which land was cleared (unfinished).
But on 21 May 2002, at the age of 71, Saint Phalle died in La Jolla, California. Upon her death, in accordance with her wishes, all ongoing work came to a halt, and further developments of the Tarot Garden came to an end.
On 8 July 2002, the Region of Tuscany granted official legal recognition to the Foundation.
Niki de Saint Phalle always considered the Tarot Garden as the work of her life.
Over her years in Maremma, she built a local team, still largely active today: Alessia Celletti, Giulia Celletti, Claudio Celletti, Marco Iacotonio, Massimo Menchetti, Gian Piero Ottavi.
Those who joined the team later: Pino Arcangeletti, Mauro Carruana, Dario Fortunato, Nicoletta Russo;
and those who are no longer active within the Foundation: Ugo Celletti, Alessandro Celletti, Tonino Urtis.
Niki de Saint Phalle imagined and conceived an « esoteric promenade between nature and culture ».
To preserve her Tarot Garden, she created a foundation in 1999, personally appointed the members of the board of directors, and clearly defined its mission: preservation.
In accordance with Saint Phalle’s wishes, the designated holder of her moral rights became president of the Tarot Garden upon her death.
The board of directors meets at least once a year.
The main missions of the Foundation are:
– « To preserve and maintain the spirit of the whole and the works that compose it for future generations, in the state in which it will be at the moment of her death. »
– « To open the museum to the public. »
– « To ensure the management and maintenance of the whole. »
