1898 - 1976
www.calder.org"Why must art be static? The next step is sculpture in motion." Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder, the American Abstract Kinetic Artist, was born in 1898. He studied engineering in New Jersey, took up drawing lessons in New York and discovered the Surrealists in Paris. His close friends included Piet Mondrian, Jaon Miro and Marcel Duchamp - Each of them took an interest in his creative out put and it easy to see how they influenced his designs!It was during the 1930's that Calder became fascinated with the idea of movement in sculpture. His 'mobiles' grew both, in popularity and scale! - commissions came thick and fast, the art world could not help but fall in love with him! The love affair stayed strong for many years... Calder also enjoyed major commercial success. Between 1972 and 1976 he worked closely with Braniff International, creating vibrant designs for their fleet of DC8 Jet's. And in 1975 BMW commissioned a design which was to become the first in their 'Art Cars' series.
Alexander "Sandy" Calder died November 11, 1976, in New York City, just after supervising the installation of his largest retrospective exhibition, at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Pics below show 'Flamingo', located outside the Federal Plaza in Chicago
and his design for BMW.
and his design for BMW.
"I love red so much that I almost want to paint everything red."
Alexander Calder
8 out of 10
