Calder Foundation

The Big Ear

Date 1943
Media
Sheet metal, bolts, and paint
Dimensions
133" × 72" × 59"
Collection
Calder Foundation, New York
Historical Photos  7
Related exhibitions  8
The Museum of Modern Art, New York (1943)

The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Alexander Calder: Sculptures and Constructions. 29 September 1943–16 January 1944.

Solo Exhibition
New Gallery, Charles Hayden Memorial Library, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (1950)

New Gallery, Charles Hayden Memorial Library, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. Calder. 5 December 1950–14 January 1951.

Solo Exhibition
Venice (1952)

Venice. XXVI Biennale di Venezia. 14 June–19 October 1952.

Group Exhibition
Arts Council of Great Britain, Tate Gallery, London (1962)

Arts Council of Great Britain, Tate Gallery, London. Alexander Calder: Sculpture–Mobiles. 4 July–12 August 1962.

Solo Exhibition
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (1998)

National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Alexander Calder: 1898–1976. 29 March–12 July 1998.

Solo Exhibition
Fundación del Museo Guggenheim Bilbao (2003)

Fundación del Museo Guggenheim Bilbao. Calder: Gravedad y la Gracia. 18 March–12 October 2003.

Solo Exhibition
Museo Jumex, Mexico City (2015)

Museo Jumex, Mexico City. Calder: Discipline of the Dance. 21 March–28 June 2015.

Solo Exhibition
Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel (2016)

Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel. Alexander Calder & Fischli/Weiss. 29 May–4 September 2016.

Group Exhibition
Works / Monumental Sculpture 217
Works / Stabile 251
Related Timeline
1937–1945 Public Commissions and the War

In 1937, Calder completed Devil Fish, his first stabile enlarged from a model. He received two important commissions: Mercury Fountain (1937) and Lobster Trap and Fish Tail (1939). His first retrospective was held in 1938 at the George Walter Vincent Smith Gallery in Springfield, Massachusetts, followed by another in 1943 at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.