Alexandre Calder - Biography
Alexander Calder was born in Philadelphia in 1898. His first solo exhibition will be organized in 1928 in New York. In 1931, "Sandy" Calder exhibited with the group Abstraction-Creation. The artist creates abstract objects moved by air or by motors that spin them endlessly, hanging from fragile black or colored metal leaf stems that move "poetically." Marcel Duchamp christens these creations "mobiles" (moving objects). Calder then imagines steel sculptures anchored to the ground, black or red sculptures to which Jean Arp gives the name "stable." These abstract forms evoke an animal and plant world. Over time, "mobiles" and "stabiles" take on increasingly imposing dimensions. Calder employs primary colors and appeals to engineering techniques to make them. The artist invents a multitude of variations to his assemblages and receives numerous public orders (Unesco in Paris, Olympic Stadium in Mexico, etc.).
The inventive and poetic character of his creations, his genius in finding the union between abstraction and evocation of nature, make Calder one of the greatest sculptors of the 20th century.
Alexander Calder died in New York City in 1976.
