Leonor Fini, surrealist painter, designer, illustrator and author, was born in 1907 in Buenos Aires, Argentina of mixed Italian and Slavic descent. She had no formal training in art but like most children, she drew and painted. As a teenager she adorned her efforts with things like crushed eggshell, beads, etc. By the time she was seventeen she was making portraits in oils of well-known people in Triest, which led to an invitation to move to Milan and paint the whole family of a government official. In 1933 she moved to Paris and her work revealed a gift of fantasy that was close to Surrealism.

She also created paintings, posters and sets for the Paris Opera and costumes for the Comedie Francaise. In addition to her work for the Parisian stage, she designed sets and costumes for La Scala opera house. She illustrated several books.

Outspoken and independent, she became part of the surrealist movement along with artists Andre Breton and Max Ernst. She later became known for her images of mysterious exotic young women often portrayed as witches or fairies. Striking in person as well as in her work, Fini appeared in public in heavy makeup and wearing unusual clothes with wide-brimmed hats and a great deal of jewelry. From 1936 until the present, almost all significant Surrealist exhibitions have featured her works