This post is dedicated to my future daughter-in-law. My son proposed in a very romantic, unexpected way at the Versace Mansion in Miami to his best friend ~ Kira Calder.
Can you take a guess where this post is going?
As an art and design lover, I was beyond excited to learn that Kira IS a descendant of Alexander Calder. Alexander Calder's grandfather, Alexander Mile Calder, and his family made their way to Philadelphia from Scotland in 1868 and called Philadelphia home. Fun fact ~ One of the most famous landmarks in our little city of brotherly love is City Hall. Billy Penn sits atop it like a sentinel watching over the city. Mile Calder created that statue, which coincidentally my son has tattooed on his back (don't ask). Sculpting obviously ran in the family. Grandson Alexander Calder is considered the most famous sculptor of the 20th century, and as we know, the creator of the modern mobile.
Richard Hallberg
As a young man, Calder moved to Paris to study and work. He discovered wire and his fascination of the linear line and movement was the precursor to the mobile. A visit to Mondrian's studio changed the trajectory of Calder's career. Seeing those large blocks of color made him think, "How interesting it would be if they oscillated?" Marcel Duchamp supposedly coined the term "mobile" when he saw what Alexander was working on. Calder soon moved his art from geometric shapes to more organic, conceptual imagery.
SheldonMindel
Among all the commissions he did, the most unusual and absolutely the largest was a series of airplanes for Braniff airlines. Dubbed "The Flying Colors of the United States." Another fun fact, the plane was destroyed in an explosion during the filming of Will Smith's movie Bad Boys while it was grounded in a hangar in Opa-locka.
More than 40 years later, Calder's work still fetches staggering prices at auction. Calder had retrospectives at all the major museums here and abroad and is included in almost every important collection, public or private. The priceless Calder pieces look amazing anywhere. They are poetry in motion, kinetic wonders that fascinate and titillate.
D'Apostrophe Design
Fortunately, if you are as fascinated as I am with these moveable, magical marvels, you can find them at many different price points by artists who were obviously inspired by Alexander, just as he was inspired by others.
Kay Douglass
"Calder's body of work represents an ever evolving demonstration of risk taking, creativity, ingenuity, and extremely impressive technical achievement."
I hope my grandchildren inherit those traits! : )
I am feeling a whole art theme, but as I am reminded, "it's not about me." Luckily, Paperless Post has the happy couple covered no matter which direction they go when the time comes to announce the details.
*This is a semi- sponsored post but all sentiments are my own <3
