The first exhibition in Greece dedicated to Niki de Saint Phalle (Neuilly-sur-Seine, 1930 – California, 2002), titled "From Shooting to Freedom", is presented at the MOMus–Museum Alex Mylona in Thiseio, Athens, from 12 December 2025 to 24 May 2026.

Niki de Saint Phalle was one of the most iconic and disarmingly free artists of the 20th century — a creator who transformed anger, pain, and rage into explosions of color, into a lasting celebration of life, imagination, and rebirth. Fearlessly crossing the boundaries of artistic expression, she was a combative woman who found redemption through art and delivered some of the most daring artistic gestures. Through her work—dark and joyful, complex, contradictory, playful, free, creative, “innocent” and “dangerous” at the same time—she challenged institutions and patriarchy. "From the Shooting pieces (Tirs)" to the multicolored "Nanas", and through paintings, collages, books, and sculptures, the world of Niki de Saint Phalle unfolds in the exhibition like a child’s game, with all the immediacy and enthusiasm that art allows to find new paths of expression.

Starting from the emblematic works that belong to the collection of MOMus–Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki thanks to the donation of the visionary collector and art dealer Alexandros Iolas and Saint Phalle herself, the exhibition seeks to reframe her artistic universe and reveal its parallel facets. The two shared a relationship of trust, artistic faith, and a common pursuit of freedom; and with Iolas’s support, Saint Phalle’s work reached an international audience and was established as one of the most recognizable of the 20th century.

The work of Niki de Saint Phalle remains profoundly relevant amid today’s social struggles, in an era that denounces abuse once again and renews the demand for freedom and equality for women (and beyond), with global interest in her work stronger than ever.

The exhibition is accompanied by guided tours, activities, and educational programs for all levels.

Curated by: Thouli Misirloglou, Artistic Director of MOMus–Museum of Contemporary Art

Creative supporter 

Caption

Mother is dead / Maman love, 1968
Silkscreen on offset-super-bütten paper,
part of a series of 6 prints from the stage
play ICH, whereas Niki de Saint Phalle
used the original drawings as visual
narrative element.
60x123 cm.
Donated by Giorgos Kitis
MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art