Calder Foundation

Wire Sculpture by Calder

Date 1928
Media
Wire
Dimensions
48 1⁄4" × 25 7⁄8" × 4 7⁄8"
Collection
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; Purchase, with funds from Howard & Jean Lipman (no. 72.168)
Historical Photos  2
Related exhibitions  7
George Walter Vincent Smith Gallery, Springfield, Massachusetts (1938)

George Walter Vincent Smith Gallery, Springfield, Massachusetts. Calder Mobiles. 8–27 November 1938.

Solo Exhibition
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (1964)

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. Alexander Calder: A Retrospective Exhibition. 6 November 1964–31 January 1965.

Solo Exhibition
Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris (1965)

Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris. Calder. 8 July–15 October 1965. Originated from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York.

Solo Exhibition
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
Palazzo a Vela, Turin, Italy (1983)

Palazzo a Vela, Turin, Italy. Calder: Mostra retrospettiva. 2 July–25 September 1983.

Solo Exhibition
Musée National d’Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris (2009)

Musée National d’Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris. Alexander Calder: les années parisiennes 1926–1933. 18 March–20 July 2009. Originated from the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.

Solo Exhibition
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2019)

National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Alexander Calder: Radical Inventor. 5 April–4 August 2019. Originated from Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Solo Exhibition
Works / Wire Sculpture 76
Related Timeline
1926–1930 Wire Sculpture and the Circus

Soon after moving to Paris in 1926, Calder created his Cirque Calder. Made of wire and a spectrum of found materials, the Cirque was a work of performance art that gained Calder an introduction to the Parisian avant-garde. He continued to explore his invention of wire sculpture, whereby he “drew” with wire in three dimensions the portraits of friends, animals, circus themes, and personalities of the day.