_Alexander "Sandy" Calder is an American sculptor and artist who most was
known for his invention of the mobile- a kinetic sculpture using a
piece of rod to create a hanging construction. He created different
types of mobile objects such as jewellery, toys but in particular
animals. His materials would mainly consist of wire and wood. As well he
was known as a painter however instead of using a paintbrush as a tool
he would pour ink on the canvas and move the canvas to create an image. This website is an online visual arts teaching and learning resource based on Alexander Calder to enhance knowledge and confidence within pre-service and primary in-service teachers.
Biography
Born August 22nd 1898 in Lawton, Pennsylvania, son of Alexander and Margaret and brother to Peggy. Art was in Calder’s family- his grandfather and father were sculptors and his mother was a painter.
Calder did not intend to be an artist, at first he studied mechanical engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology and graduated in 1922. Working in various fields Calder found a sudden interest in art and began taking drawing lessons from his father's friend. No matter what job, Calder continued to desire drawing and painting and decided to enroll himself at the Art Students League in 1923. Calder received his first illustration job in 1923 on the National Police Gazette, sending him to a Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus to sketch scenes. This project was the inspiration behind Le Cirque de Calder (1926-1932) a rendition of Calder’s own circus using wire to make animals and acrobats. His passion of making wired toys continued, working for Oshkosh Toy Company illustrating advertisements and designing toys. Calder travelled around the world displaying his wooden-wire sculptures to leading artists. Receiving support from established artist Calder decided to lead his first solo exhibition of his wired sculptures at Galerie Billet in 1929. In June of that year he met Louisa James whom he married in 1931 and mother of his daughters Sandra and Mary. He made Louisa’s wedding ring which lead to his design of jewellery. His works were described by many as “fantasy, made from wood, wire and plaster, His sculptures were out of volume, colour, size where the wire became taut, rigid, and geometrically pure” (Arnason, 1971, 18). In 1933 Calder opened an exhibition of SES Mobiles with 15 of his objects made with motors and 15 others with moving objects. He then found a passion in 1935 to design large mobiles outdoors (stabiles) where he would create small designs of models and then supervise the construction of the large models. He often made mobile sets for plays such as Martha Graham’s (1934-36) –Circus, Erik Satie (1936) - Socrate and Padiac Collum’s (1946) - Balloons. In 1976 at the age of 78, Alexander Calder died. Today there are many museums over the world with retrospectives of his works and a foundation established in his honour (Arnason & Mulus, 1971). Cirque de Calder (1926- 1931)
Arc of Petals (1941)
A Universe (1934)
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Calder with his sister Peggy
Calder's sketch of circus
Calder's action toy- the Kangaroo
Calder creating his circus
Calder's work exhibited in 1931
Calder and wife Louisa on their wedding day
Calder and his family
A Stabile- "Bucephale"
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References
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Arnason, H.H & Mulas, U. (1971). Calder. London: Thames and Hudson.
Images Received from
Arnason, H.H & Mulas, U. (1971). Calder [Image]. London: Thames and Hudson.
Calder, A & Davidson, J. (1966). Calder: An autobiography with pictures [Image]. New York: Pantheon Books.
The Salmon R. Guggenheim Foundation. (2012). Collection Online: Alexander Calder [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/show-full/piece/?search=Mobile&page=&f=Title&object=76.2553.137
The Museum of Modern Art. (2010). A Universe. [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O:TA:E:calder&page_number=2&template_id=1&sort_order=1
Whitney Museum of American Art. (2012). Calder’s circus [Image]. Retrieved from http://whitney.org/Collection/AlexanderCalder/8336195
Arnason, H.H & Mulas, U. (1971). Calder. London: Thames and Hudson.
Images Received from
Arnason, H.H & Mulas, U. (1971). Calder [Image]. London: Thames and Hudson.
Calder, A & Davidson, J. (1966). Calder: An autobiography with pictures [Image]. New York: Pantheon Books.
The Salmon R. Guggenheim Foundation. (2012). Collection Online: Alexander Calder [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/show-full/piece/?search=Mobile&page=&f=Title&object=76.2553.137
The Museum of Modern Art. (2010). A Universe. [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O:TA:E:calder&page_number=2&template_id=1&sort_order=1
Whitney Museum of American Art. (2012). Calder’s circus [Image]. Retrieved from http://whitney.org/Collection/AlexanderCalder/8336195