Calder

Alexander Calder

1989 - 1976

Poll

Is your room clean or messy?

• Clean

• Messy

Calder's Studio

Open Ended

After seeing his studio, what kind of artist do you think Alexander Calder was?

Alexander's Work can be seen ALL over the world!

Childhood

• Nickname: Sandy

• His parents provided him the tools he needed to build toys and jewelry. They even gave him a studio!

• Here is a self portrait of him with his tools

• He built the dog sculpture as a christmas present for his parents when he was 10

Jewelry

• He started making jewelry at age 8 for his sister's dolls

• Used beads and left over wire a telephone repair man left on their street.

• He grew up to make jewelry for his wife, friends, and his sister.

Poll

Is this abstract or realistic?

• Abstract

• Realistic

Open Ended

What animal do you think this is?

Horse

• An abstract wire sculpture

• Look at the legs, it goes from 2 wires to 1

Coiling Wire

• Calder wrapped or coiled the wires instead of using heat to make the connections

• Using pliers, Calder was a master at making perfect coils

Poll

Do you think these sculptures are 3D?

• Yes

• No

Three Dimensional

• Has a height

• Has a width

• Has a Depth

Mobiles

• Calder's most important works

• American sculpture admired by people all over the world

• They have the ability for motion

Horned Toad Races

• Worked with motion since he was a child

• Would tie matchbox cars onto horned toads, and have them race

• They would race for the fly that was dangling in front of them.

Poll

Do you think that balance is important when you are creating mobiles?

• Yes

• No

Calder Quote:

"I start by cutting out a lot of shapes. Next I file them and smooth them off. Some are bits I just happen to find. Then I arrange them on a table with wires between the pieces for the overall pattern. Finally I cut some more on them with the shears, figuring the balance. You put a shape here and then you put another shape at the other end and then you balance them on your finger. I begin with the smallest and work up."

Look, and try to guess the title of the mobile on the next page.

Open Ended

What do you think the mobile was supposed to be of?

Lobster Trap and Fish Tail

Open Ended

What kind of tools do you think Calder used to create his mobiles?

Calder's Tools

• Materials: Sheet Metal and Wire

• Tools: Wire Cutters and Pliers

• Tools with him, and didn't really like power tools

Assembly Chart

• All of his mobiles could be taken apart easily

• Done this way so they could be mailed or shipped easily

• Made to fit into envelopes

What do you think this is supposed to be?

Open Ended

What is it?

Baby Spider

• This is a standing mobile

• Can still move

• Three types of mobiles: hanging, standing, and those attached to walls

• The base holds up the mobile

Open Ended

What three colors do you think Alexander Calder used the most?

Two can be seen in the Lobster Trap and Fish Tail, and all three are in Baby Spider

Mondrian's Compositions

• Calder was inspired by Mondrian's work

• Used Red, Yellow, and Black

• Called Calder Colors

Mondrian's Studio

• Moved to Paris to become an artist, and met Mondrian there

• Calder loved his bright colors and he chose the colors as his own

• He wished that Mondrian's rectangles would move, so he created movement for them

Open Ended

If mobile means a moving sculpture, what do you think they call a non moving sculpture?

Stabiles

• A non moving sculpture

• Calder's Stabiles can be seen all over the world

• Over the years Calder made his sculptures bigger

• Most are painted red and black

Models

• Calder would first make a small stabile in his studio by cutting pieces of sheet metal

• Special metal workers would make the giant pieces by copying Calder's models

• Calder would go to the site and watch the construction crew install his stabile to make it look like his model

What is it?

Open Ended

What do you think the sculpture is?

Whale

• Can you see how this would be a whale? Look at the movement and curves

• Can you feel the movement in the sculpture?

Open Ended

What other color did he like to use in his stabiles?

Picture a sculpture made in that color. It stands outside a skyscraper, and is an enormous sculpture. See if it looks like your imagination

What is it?

Open Ended

Did it look like what you thought?

What do you think the sculpture is of?

Flamingo

• Can you relate the tall legs, long neck, and beak to Calder's stabile?

• Imagine walking under this giant stabile

Flamingo Close Up

• It kind of seems to move as you walk up to it because of the angles and curves

• He signed his work with AC and 73 for the year (1973)

• Is found in downtown Chicago

Calder Holding Mobile

• What kind of man do you think Calder was?

• He was always happy, joking, giggling, and grinning.

• He received pure pleasure from combining interesting shapes, bright colors, and lively motion

Calder Interview

Reporter: "Have you ever experienced sadness?"

Calder: "No, I don't have the time."

Reporter: "What do you feel art should be?"

Calder: "Above all, I feel art should be happy."

Reporter: "Were there other artists in your family?"

Calder: "My mother was a painter, my father and grandfather were sculptors. Yes, I can from a talented family who encouraged me from my earliest memories to be creative."

Conclusion

• Calder called his mobiles, "poetry that dance."

• Calder died at the age of 78.

• At his funeral a friend said, "The dancer is gone bt the dance remains"

• Calder's mobiles now dace all over the world.

Multiple Choice

Alexander Calder was an American artist

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

His personality was happy and cheerful

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Lobster Trap and Fish Tail was a stabile

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

He was inspired to make mobiles by artist Pablo Picasso

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

The 3D's of sculpture are height, width, and depth

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

He called his mobiles "poetry that dance."

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

He balanced his mobiles on a scale

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Calder's art is abstract

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

A stabile is a sculpture that doesn't move

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Calder prefers to use power tools

• True

• False