Dina Vierny | French art muse, 89

Dina Vierny, muse to the French sculptor Aristide Maillol and model for the painters Henri Matisse and Pierre Bonnard, died Tuesday in Paris, five days before her 90th birthday, her family said.

Ms. Vierny, who began modeling for Maillol at 15, was his greatest fan and the leading force in making his acclaimed figurative bronzes available to the public. In 1963, she gave France a collection of monumental Maillol sculptures that stand in the Tuileries Garden. In 1995, she created a foundation to house the works of Maillol and others, the Musee Maillol, on Paris' Left Bank. She collaborated with the artist until his death in a car accident in 1944, inspiring sleek, bold works such as La Montagne, L'Air and La Riviere.

Ms. Vierny worked for the French Resistance during World War II. Maillol sent her to southern France to stay with his friend Matisse, reportedly instructing him to use her as a model. They became fast friends. She eventually also posed for Raoul Dufy and Bonnard, who used her as inspiration for his Grand Nu Sombre. She opened a gallery in Paris' Saint-Germain-des-Pres district in 1947. - AP