Caldwell

Author: Zhang Guangqi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: Alexander Calder (July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was born in Philadelphia, USA. His father and grandfather were both sculptors. In 1919, Calder graduated from the Mechanical Engineering department at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, laying the foundation for his later invention and design of kinetic sculptures. In 1922, he went to New York to study painting as a hobby. The following year, he joined the Art Students League of America, a group led by the American "Dada" movement. He truly began to engage in sculpture around 1926 after moving to Paris. Inspired by European modernist sculpture, he started creating toy animals from wire and wood, assembling them into a miniature "circus," and exhibited them, attracting public interest. Subsequently, Calder created life-sized figures from metal wire. In 1930, the studio of Dutch painter Piet Mondrian provided him with great inspiration, leading him to contemplate the abstraction of art. Between 1931 and 1932, he created many sculptures driven by machines, encouraged by Marcel Duchamp. By 1937, he designed the "Mercury Fountain" for the Spanish Pavilion at the Paris World's Fair, where flowing mercuryed metal plates attached to a rotating rod, becoming his first true "kinetic sculpture." This large kinetic sculpture, "Shrimp Cage and Mobile," was one of his representative works from 1939, designed on this foundation. Calder is one of the most popular and internationally renowned modern artists in the United States, and one of the key innovators in 20th-century sculpture. He is famous for his unique "kinetic sculptures" and "static sculptures." His creative field is vast, ranging from massive steel sculptures, paintings, and tapestries to gemstone design, with his works displayed in public spaces around the world. His static sculptures depict the dance of a dragonfly landing on water, while his kinetic steel sculptures achieve dynamic balance through wind power, captivating viewers.