Shout out the Secret: Niki de Saint Phalle's Intimate Stories

This article examines Niki de Saint Phalle's (1930-2002) literary production with the aim of showing how an intimate and violent creation serves as therapy by revealing the trauma of sexual abuse within the family resulting in impaired mental health. This essay is divided into four parts: first, we present the artist as a source of inspiration for other works; second, we inquire into the autobiographical as linked to the author's literary production; and third, we analyze the short story Mon secret (1994)-a tale that becomes a liberating cry from the weight of shame and guilt. We conclude with some reflections on the uncertain separation between private life and public exposure.