Mobile - ASL

Alexander Calder (1898-1976)
Mobile, 1957
Born into an artistic family, Alexander Calder first studied mechanical engineering. Calder worked for several years after graduation at various jobs, including as a hydraulics and automotive engineer, timekeeper in a logging camp, and fireman in a ship’s boiler room. But his desire to become an artist won out. By 1931, he was creating sculpture in a new, modern form that contributed significantly to the shift of sculpture from heavy and ponderous realistic works to wind-driven, abstract, and whimsical pieces. Two years later, in 1933, Calder bought a house in Roxbury.
His Connecticut location allowed him friendships with surrealist artists such as Yves Tanguy in Woodbury and working affiliation with Waterbury Iron Works.
Calder became best known for kinetic sculptures dubbed “mobiles” by artist Marcel Duchamp. The Mattatuck’s piece is typical of these works. It is multifaceted sculpture constructed with cut pieces of lightweight painted aluminum connected by wire. Its palette is primary colors-blue, red, and yellow accompanied by black and white. Hung from the ceiling, the piece responds to its environment, especially changes in airflow, by setting into slow, drifting motion.