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Black Widow, 1959

Work

Black Widow

Date 1959
Media
Sheet metal, bolts, and paint
Dimensions
7'8" × 14'3" × 7'5"
Collection
The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Mrs. Simon Guggenheim Fund
Monumental Sculpture, Stabile
Map of installed works
View our map of installed works, Calder Around the World
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Historical Photos  4
Black Widow (1962)
Nuns with Black Widow (1959), outside the Chiesa di San Domenico, Spoleto, Italy, 1962Photograph by Ugo Mulas © Ugo Mulas Heirs
Nuns with Black Widow (1959), outside the Chiesa di San Domenico, Spoleto, Italy, 1962
Photograph by Ugo Mulas
Calder and a nun with Black Widow, Spoleto (1962)
Calder and a nun with Black Widow (1959), outside the Chiesa di San Domenico, Spoleto, Italy, 1962Photograph by Ugo Mulas © Ugo Mulas Heirs
Calder and a nun with Black Widow (1959), outside the Chiesa di San Domenico, Spoleto, Italy, 1962
Photograph by Ugo Mulas
Black Widow (1964)
Black Widow (1959), The Museum of Modern Art sculpture garden, New York, c. 1964Photograph by Ugo Mulas © Ugo Mulas Heirs
Black Widow (1959), The Museum of Modern Art sculpture garden, New York, c. 1964
Photograph by Ugo Mulas
Calder’s Universe (1976)
Opening reception for Calder's Universe, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1976Photograph by Waintrob-Budd
Opening reception for Calder’s Universe, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1976Photograph by Waintrob-Budd
Related exhibitions  2
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (1976)

Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Calder’s Universe. 14 October 1976–6 February 1977.

Solo Exhibition
The Museum of Modern Art, New York (2021)

The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Alexander Calder: Modern from the Start. 14 March 2021–15 January 2022.

Solo Exhibition
Archive
Works / Monumental Sculpture 217
Sémaphores (1959)
Sémaphores, 1959
Spider (1959)
Spider, 1959
Lily (1959)
Lily, 1959
The Arches (1959)
The Arches, 1959
Works / Stabile 251
La Botte (1959)
La Botte, 1959
Untitled (maquettes for Amon Carter Museum of American Art Plaza, 1960)
Untitled (maquettes for Amon Carter Museum of American Art Plaza), 1960
The Crab (maquette) (1961)
The Crab (maquette), 1961
Cock’s Comb (1961)
Cock's Comb, 1961
Related Timeline
1953–1962
1953–1962 Large-scale Developments and Intercontinental Projects

During a yearlong stay in Aix-en-Provence, Calder executed the first group of large-scale outdoor works and concurrently concentrated on painting gouaches. In 1954–55, he visited the Middle East, India, and South America, with trips to Paris in between, resulting in an astonishing output and range of work. Toward the late 1950s, Calder turned his attention to commissions both at home and abroad.