Isabelle Collin Dufresne, a French-born heiress, was raised in a convent and later became a prominent figure in the 1950s New York social scene.
As a young woman, she surrounded herself with modernist artists, including John D. Graham, John Chamberlain, and Salvador Dalí, which sparked her career as a painter.
Through her relationship with Dalí, she met Andy Warhol in the early 1960s and changed her name to UltraViolet, becoming one of Warhol's "Factory" superstars.
UltraViolet appeared in several of Warhol's films, including "The Life of Juanita Castro" (1965),"I a Man" (1967),and "Maidstone" (1970),as well as other counterculture films.
She made her legit film debut in the Oscar-winning "Midnight Cowboy" (1969) and went on to appear in a range of films, including "The Phynx" (1970),"Dinah East" (1970),"Simon, King of the Witches" (1971),and "An Unmarried Woman" (1978).
UltraViolet also pursued a career as a visual artist, with her mixed-media works displayed worldwide. She opened an art studio in Nice in 1990 and created the movement "L'Ultratique," publishing two manifestos in the early 1990s.
In the 1980s, she renounced her excessive lifestyle and became a disciple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which she practiced for the rest of her life.
UltraViolet's later years were marked by a focus on her art and a more independent lifestyle. She divided her time between her studio in Nice and her penthouse apartment in Manhattan.
In her later years, she was diagnosed with cancer and passed away on June 14, 2014, at the age of 78.
