Alexander Calder: A One-Man Art Circus

Ever wonder who came up with the idea for a mobile like the one hanging above your little sister or brother’s crib? The inventor was Alexander Calder, and he was a famous American sculptor.

Alexander (Sandy) Calder was born into a family of artists on July 22, 1898, in Lawton, Pennsylvania. His father was a sculptor who created large sculptures all over the country. Because of that, the family moved a lot when Alexander was a child.

Alexander’s parents encouraged their son’s creativity. From the time he was in elementary school, he had his own workshop space. Yet, although he was a talented artist, Alexander wanted to be an engineer. After high school, Alexander attended Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. He graduated in 1919 and worked a series of different engineering jobs before deciding that what he really wanted to do was be a professional artist like his parents.

In 1923, Alexander moved to New York City and took classes at the Art Students League. He also worked as an artist for the National Police Gazette magazine. In 1925, he spent two weeks with the circus, where he drew pictures of circus scenes for the magazine. This experience left a huge impression on him and greatly influenced his art. In 1926, he left school and New York behind and moved to Paris, France. There he created Cirque Calder, a one-of-a-kind art exhibit of a circus made from wire, cloth and other materials. As part of the artwork, Alexander would give shows where he moved the pieces to create a circus performance.

Word spread about the artist who put on sculpture performances. In 1928, he had his first major exhibit in New York. Although the exhibit included paintings, Alexander realized he really liked creating sculptures best. He continued building them and began playing with more abstract ideas. No longer did his sculptures look exactly like people or animals. Instead they were freeform. In 1931, Alexander started making truly movable sculptures. He added cranks and motors to these pieces and called them “mobiles.” Soon, he saw that it was possible to make mobiles that could move with the air so he stopped adding the motors. Alexander also designed large outdoor sculptures, many of which were like mobiles and had parts that moved with the wind.

As his fame rose, Alexander continued making mobiles both large and small. During his long career, he had exhibits in major museums and galleries and made sculptures for places like Aztec Stadium in Mexico City and John F. Kennedy International Airport (then Idlewild Airport) in New York.

Alexander died on November 11, 1976, in New York. He was 78. Written by Tamar Burris, a former elementary school teacher who now works as a freelance writer and curriculum developer for PBS, the Discovery Channel and other education- related companies. Sources: Calder Foundation: Calder’s Life, http://calder.org/ life/page/biography.html; The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation: Artist Biography

Alexander Calder, http://www.guggenheimcollection.org/site/artist_bio_26.html.