Cyclop: A Monumental Folly by Tinguely, Saint Phalle, and Their Artist Friends

A total environment-cum-woodland utopia created by an all-star team of “mad sculptors” led by Jean Tinguely

Created by sculptor Jean Tinguely (1925–91) in collaboration with Niki de Saint Phalle (1930–2002) and their artist friends Bernhard Luginbühl, Larry Rivers, Jesús Rafael Soto and Daniel Spoerri, among others, Le Cyclop is a monumental sculptural work that dominates the forest of Milly-la-Forêt outside Paris. Elaborated upon for three decades, the collective project generated a total environment. Its exterior presents an immense head bedecked in sparkling mirrors, built almost entirely from found and industrial materials. Its interior houses a surprising universe punctuated with sound sculptures, a small automatic theater, machinery with scrap metal gears as well as homages to Duchamp, Klein and Schwitters.
This definitive publication tells in detail the story of Le Cyclop, gathering new essays by an array of international art historians and scholars, an extensive chronology as well as remarkable archival materials.