Alexander Calder

Biography

Photo by Man Ray © Man Ray Trust / ADAGP

"When I use colors and shapes and forms and relate them to the space around them, I am not making an abstraction. I am making something real. I am not creating a thing that exists in another world — I am making something that exists in this one. It is not about escaping nature but reinterpreting its rhythms."

Alexander Calder (1898–1976) was an American sculptor whose pioneering approach to movement transformed modern art. Though he initially studied mechanical engineering, Calder soon redirected his curiosity about motion and balance toward the world of art. His deep understanding of mechanics profoundly influenced his artistic vision, allowing him to infuse structure, motion, and playfulness into his creations in ways that had never been seen before. Calder is best known for his mobiles—sculptures composed of suspended elements that shift and dance in response to the slightest air currents. These works represented a radical departure from traditional static sculpture, introducing movement as an...